Pink Elephants Drink GreenTea
by SensuallyPassionate
Summary: Gerald and Phoebe have not seen each other in almost 4 years. Under unusual circumstances, they meet again. However, life has drastically changed for one of them and it is uncertain if their love has one last shot to conquer all or if they should forever just decide to remain friends. SEQUEL TO 'The Purple Elephant'.
1. Chapter 1

**Gerald**

"_I hate when you did this, Gerald. I'm your best-friend; why shut down on me like this?"_

"_You can't understand, Arnold" I sighed, taking a step back. I never meant for us to turn against each other like this; especially after what had just happened a few months ago. "You just can't. You live in this utopia and cannot relate to having the one woman you loved snatched away before your eyes."_

_I watched Arnold hiss loudly, eyes narrowing menacingly as he slammed his notebooks loudly against his desk. "You really think my life is perfect? Did you forget that the state now owns my grandmother and my grandfather is now dead!?"_

_I grew quiet, beginning to stare at the lamp besides my bed. I flicked it on and watched the bright light illuminate my side of the bedroom. I had empty fruit snack boxes, dirty laundry, and half-empty soda cans scattered aimlessly across the floor I had just vacuumed a few days ago. I took in a small, breath._

"_Arnold…."_

"_No, Gerald, you listen!" he shouted, face turning a murky shade of red as his nostrils flared. "Stop saying I can't understand! I can and I am trying to help you! My relationship with Helga is far from perfect. Aside from my current issues with my family, Helga has her own demons that she faces. We are not the power couple you think we are."_

"_Couldn't tell." I snottily shot back, sneering. "You and Helga seem to always have it together; always happy together, cuddled together, laughing together, you two are damn near inseparable! I don't understand why you feel the need to constantly remind me how shitty my love life is compared to yours."_

"_I don't!"_

"_Then what was that snide comment about me losing Phoebe to my own greed, huh? What do you call that?"_

"_The truth!" he roared, inching towards me. By now there were a few of our floor mates standing outside our door, peering in to see what was going on between Arnold and I. Arnold and I never got into any 'real' fight before today and as in sync as we were, the tension that had built up from this morning escalated into simple fury and rage on both sides. He had said a few things to a few of our frat brothers that were brought back to my attention during lunch. I wanted to avoid confrontation so I decided to speak with him one on one before his 1:30 lecture. Arnold admitted to saying those things but attempted to defend himself in saying he worded them incorrectly and wanted to apologize for how they came off towards others. By then I was seeing nothing but red and was practically ready to fight my best-friend. Word had gotten back to me that a few of our frat brothers-Kevin, Michael, and Durand- inquired about my love-life and who the 'mystery' girl was that got away from me senior year of high-school. Arnold being the good person he was did not outright give them exact names, dates, and details as they wanted but flat out told them that I lost the love of my life because I was too busy testing the waters with other women and going off my insatiable lusts rather than raw emotions of my heart. Only Arnold would make my stupidity sound so profound and poetic, but it did not deter from the fact that I was now heated and ready to punch that football headed backstabber in the face for putting my business out in the open. It was bad enough our fraternity was notorious for recruiting womanizing, sardonic, sex-crazed assholes; it became worse when I became classified as 'leader' of the wolf pack and inherited the moniker of 'Hit-and-Quit Gerald'. _

"_You lost Phoebe because you were too busy sticking your 'Johanessen' in Ariel. Then, if I recall correctly, a few months after we started our first semester of freshman year, you were banging this chick Monica, then her twin sister Mona, then these triplets, Iowa, Irene, and Iris, then was caught getting a BJ from your teaching assistant, Mrs. Ingalls, in the track and field locker room!"_

_I growled, stepping up to Arnold in full height. I shoved him. "You know nothing about that, Arnold!"_

"_Oh really?" he shoved me back. "I don't know how you became such a man-whore since Phoebe left for Japan? Or is it that I don't know how it tears you up inside that you blame yourself every day she is not here? Or could it be that I know it burns your soul to know she is engaged to some rich Asian jerk that can afford to pay both of our college tuition with a single swipe of his credit card?"_

"_Shut up!" I shoved him back. I watched mercilessly as Arnold slammed into his armoire, knocking down his iron and a few stray books. He drew in an angry breath. "You have your perfect relationship! You have the woman you want to marry on your arm, sleeping in your bed damn near every night. You have that woman that you can see bearing your children. You have that, Arnold; so how dare you judge me!?"_

"_No one is judging you, Gerald. I'm trying to tell you that you messed up and it's time you stop blaming everyone else for your problems. You blame Helga for not telling you about Phoebe's engagement, you blame me for not giving you the right advice, you blame your parents for not accepting Phoebe. You blame everyone but the person responsible."_

_I grew silent. I backed away from Arnold who clutched a metal rod hanging from besides his desk. We stared as each other, breathing heavy as tempers flared. I turned to see a much larger hoard of our neighbors crowd around our bedroom door; scurrying when I flinched towards them. I reached out to slam the door before I watched Helga march in and fling herself towards Arnold. "What the hell!?"_

"_I'm fine, Helga." He spoke softly at her, still eyeing me. "Gerald and I were just talking."_

"_Not from what Princess Wellington-Lloyd told me." She barked, kneeling down to cradle him. She examined him for a moment to check for bruises before looking at me. "What the hell, hair boy? Are you trying to start World War three?"_

_I ignored Helga and reached for my red hooded sweatshirt. I grabbed my keys from atop of my desk and mumbled that I would be back tomorrow. I had planned on sleeping at the frat house that night until things simmered down between Arnold and I but Arnold wouldn't let it go. Before I could make it down the hall and towards the elevators, he yelled out to me. I wanted to disregard him and put in my ear buds to drown out the current gossip that was swirling around our hall, but Arnold called out to me again; this time throwing a shoe that hit me in the crevice of my back. I grew angry all over again. "What the hell, Arnold?!"_

"_So you are going to run away, huh? Just like that?"_

"_What do you want me to say? You seem to have all the answers about me, Arnold."_

"_I'm your best-friend, Gerald!" he shouted, nudging Helga off his back as he stormed up to me. "Of course I know; which is why I apologize for how I said things to the guys but I DON'T apologize for the message."_

_I scoffed, shrugging his hand from off my shoulder. "Whatever you say, Arnold."_

_The elevator doors opened. I tried to step in but Arnold pressed the emergency stop button. I snatched out my headphones, glaring at him; shoving him in a fit of rage. Arnold punched me in my nose and I returned the favor. Before things could truly escalate, Helga had raced towards Arnold, holding him back against a wall as Sid and Stinky held me on the opposite side of the hall. I watched Arnold struggle to get out of Helga's death grip she learned from watching too much wrestlmania as I struggled to break free from Harold and Stinky. Helga shouted that she would not let go until we both calmed down and were able to converse logically and calmly; unlike a bunch of baboons fighting over the last banana. I sighed as my body grew lax after watching Arnold tussle less and less. Once Stinky and Harold finally let me go, Helga did the same for Arnold. I held my nose and checked to see if there were any traces of blood. Arnold had a mean right hook and I could have sworn he learned that from Helga herself. It was not bleeding but I could tell it was fractured. I winced at the small pain as I tried to touch it. _

"_Don't touch it." Arnold said softly, walking towards me. "You may break it"_

"_You got halfway there." I retorted, growing angry again. I watched Arnold step away; eyes widening slightly in fear that I would hit him again. I had to reassure everyone I was not going to take a cheap shot at him; getting annoyed when Helga and Harold got in position to pounce. "I think it's fractured."_

"_I'll go get the nurse." Helga spoke calmly. She grabbed Nadine and Rhonda who were watching from the sidelines to head down with her to the campus clinic as Stinky and Harold took it upon themselves to disperse some of the crowd that remained loitering. _

_I sighed, looking at a very apologetic Arnold. "I'm sorry, Gerald. I just got so angry. I really am sorry for telling the guys what I said but as your best-friend, I will only tell you the truth."_

"_The truth that I lost Phoebe? How is that truthful, Arnold?" I attempted to keep my voice steady in fear of starting another rumble. "She left because her family was leaving and they hated me."_

"_Though that is true, you are to blame as well. Let's be honest right now Gerald, do you really think Phoebe would have left if you would have been man enough to stick it through with her during one of the most difficult decisions of her life?"_

"_Defending her boyfriend against her racist prick of a father should be a no brainer, Arnold."_

"_You did not make things any better, Gerald!" Arnold took a moment to collect himself. "I admit, Phoebe should have stood by your side and defended you more so than she did but she was between a rock and a hard place and you sleeping around with another woman did not help the situation."_

"_So why all of a sudden do you give a damn about my love life, Arnold?" I shouted, unable to maintain my temper. I watched lazily as Harold and Stinky got in between Arnold and I to keep the level of animosity and physical contact at a minimum. "Why now do you decide to open your mouth? Why not before we got arrested and were forced to serve a three-month jail sentence for hijacking a plane; almost ruining our chances in getting into college?"_

"_Because you were finally maturing, Gerald! You were going after the woman you loved and not letting her slip away from you without so much as a fight. You were finally willing to put the work in to make a lasting relationship."_

"_What do you know about making things work for a lasting relationship?" I spat. "You have the perfect one that rivals any one that any of our friends have ever had."_

_Arnold remained quiet, tightly clenching his fists before slamming one against the wall beside him. Harold, Stinky, and I watched closely as we heard Arnold drop the F-bomb and a couple other ones. It stunned us. Arnold only used brash language when he was either incredibly irate or could not find the right words to say in a difficult situation-which was very seldom. "Jeez, Gerald do you think being in a relationship is rainbows and butterflies? I am in love with a woman that has so many issues, even a shrink can't really help her. She has an emotionally, verbally, and physically abusive father, an alcoholic and a drunk for a mother, and a perfectionist of a sister who lavishes in all of the family glory; leaving Helga to compensate and fend for herself."_

"_Arnold…"_

"_Then you have me, the 'nice, good' young man every adult wants their daughter to one day marry when in reality, I am pissed off and angry at the goddamn world because I have literally no one but Helga and you by my side! My parents were never found in San Lorenzo, my grandmother is a ward of the state, and my grandfather died a few months ago. I had to sign over the rights to the only home I knew to Oskar and his wife in hopes that they would take care of the boarding house while I am slowly losing my sanity in trying to keep a straight face when my entire world is crumbling before me!"_

_I quickly embraced Arnold, Harold and Stinky following suit as we consoled our friend. I knew lately things have been rather stressful for Arnold but I never would have guessed as to how stressful. When Dr. Bliss came with a signed order from a judge stating that Arnold was unfit to truly give his grandmother the care she needed, it took both me and a policeman to keep Arnold from wringing the poor woman's neck as she and her two henchman waltzed into Arnold's home and placed his grandmother in a straitjacket. About three weeks later, Arnold received a call from one of the caregivers he hired to look after his grandfather while he was away at college during the weekdays; telling him the unfortunate news of his sudden passing. Arnold went ballistic, throwing his notebook at our professor while he punched a fellow classmate for trying to aide him. He was escorted out by campus security and detained for almost three days. With all of the emotional turmoil, Arnold thought it best to sign over the rights to the boarding house to Oskar and his wife; who, so far, have been doing nothing but running it straight into the ground. They were currently leasing to crack heads, prostitutes, and allowing Oskar's extended family to stay rent free. Though Ernie and Mr. Wynn were still boarding there, it was very little they could do. _

"_I'm sorry, man." My voice was no higher than a soft whisper, my pulsating nose damned to hell. I released Arnold and watched as he wiped away a tear or two. _

"_I am too, Gerald; I never should have said anything but it needed to be said."_

"_What can you do about it?" I shrugged, silently screaming for joy as I watched Helga and the girls return with Nurse Hammer. "It's not like I can change anything right? Phoebe is engaged to be married; I can't compete with that."_

"_Maybe not but what had…have…with Phoebe is real; and maybe when she comes back to visit the states sometime this year you can maybe meet up with her and see if there is any sliver of hope left for the both of you." Arnold took a pregnant pause, groaning. "I sometimes feel like I don't know you anymore. Ever since she left, you have been sleeping with women like it was a competitive sport. That isn't you, Gerald."_

_I didn't respond; instead I followed nurse Hammer downstairs to the campus clinic to ease the pain of my fractured nose. _

Turns out, it was actually broken and I was instructed to wear a cast for a few weeks as well as have minor surgery to install a small metal plate where my left nasal bone used to be. It was shattered beyond repair and for about seven months I did not let Arnold live it down. That was our first actual fight we have ever had- almost two years ago. It was towards the end of sophomore year of college and began because our fraternity brothers had found a picture of Phoebe in my room in a shoe box underneath my bed. They asked around to see who she was and though every person they asked could have said something, I was gracious they did not. Arnold did not say her name but he did confirm that she was my ex-girlfriend- the girl I got arrested on 'terrorism' charges for. Before I even had the opportunity to step foot on campus at North-Hillwood University, I was already a common name and a notorious figure. I was not supposed to be inducted into a fraternity until late sophomore year but because of my infamy, I managed to get Arnold and I in by the end of our first-semester. Everyone we have ever known and been friends with attended NHU and it served as our last hoorah before we permanently separated into adulthood. I was a political-science major with a concentration of pre-law, Arnold chose pre-medicine, Helga was a double major in creative writing and English, Rhonda fashion design, Harold and Stinky both chose criminal justice with hopes of joining the force in the future, Sid and Eugene both chose theater- Sid often times screaming in agony as Eugene insisted they do musicals together while Curly…well….he was still just Curly.

I clung my jacket closer to shield myself from the brutal winds of the oncoming snow storm. I had forgotten my hat at the apartment and was forced to buy a pair of earmuffs from a local vendor near the library. I clenched my scarf closer around my neck as I waved at the figure across the street. I promised this would be the last time Arnold would have to come and pick me up at indecent hours.

"Thanks, man." I huffed, entering the vehicle. It was a bit smaller than what he and I were used to but we made due with the money we were given. "I had no idea it was going to get like this."

Arnold and I did our signature handshake. "Gerald, I was in the middle of something." He chuckled.

Judging by his clothing, I could tell he either rolled right out of bed or threw on something quick to keep me from waiting. I scoffed, rubbing my hands together against the heater. "Helga can wait. I'm sure she will still be in the mood once you get back."

He playfully shoved me, putting the car in gear. "Better hope so. I was planning on proposing tonight, you know."

Damn. I forgot. Arnold had dragged me to the jewelry store before we left to help him pick out a ring- since I was so-called a 'seasoned' ring shopper. Being inside of Tiffany's again only brought the sickening feeling of nostalgia and I was willing to say and do anything to get out of there. "Damn, man. My bad. Did you get to that part yet or did I interrupt that too?"

"No, you interrupted a very intimate part but I forgive you." He chuckled, allowing a conniving grin to curl upon his lips.

"What?"

"I forgive you only because you plan on buying your best bud one of those chicken sandwiches from McDonalds he has an addiction for."

I laughed as Arnold pulled into a drive-thru. He sure had a way of getting over on me. He was lucky I didn't spend my last on the coffee I was planning to buy before he had called and told me he was waiting outside. He would have been buying his own weird tasting sandwich. "How do you eat this stuff, man?"

"Hey, I think it's better than back home."

"Yeah, only in Japan do they create weird stuff that makes the rest of the world say 'What the hell'?"

Arnold laughed, inching closer towards the window. "All jokes aside, you nervous?"

I let in a shallow breath, beginning to play with the tassels of my scarf. I refrained from wearing this scarf often because it reminded me too much of her. The day she came by to drop it off was on my birthday almost four years ago. I have not seen her since. She came to the states once to visit Helga during a prolonged hospital stay due to a softball injury that left her almost paralyzed from the waist down but I did not find out until it was too late; she already had left and headed back on her plane to Tokyo, Japan. I kept the scarf in the white box with the red-ribbon bow she had given me to preserve her scent. If I sniffed it closely, I could still smell the faint scent of her perfume- Vera. I rested back against my seat as Arnold inched closer to the drive-thru window. It was my third day in Japan and I was getting more and more anxious to see Phoebe. I chose to study abroad for the simple fact of seeing her. It was a graduation requirement that all seniors do at least one semester abroad in a foreign country to touch on politics and international relations. Seeing as how international relations was an interest of mine and Japan was one of the countries on the list, I chose to come to Tokyo instead of Sao Paulo, Brazil much to Arnold's disagreement. Once Helga had found out about Arnold and I choosing the study abroad in Tokyo, Helga immediately decided to follow; the rest of the gang doing the same as a final trip with all of us together.

"Is it obvious?"

Arnold nodded. "Don't sweat it, Gerald. You will be fine."

"Does she know I'm here?"

"No. I made Helga promise not to tell her."

There was a moment of silence. "Why did Helga fight tooth and nail to keep us from coming here? Is she hiding something we don't know?"

Arnold shrugged. "Beats me. Helga only told me about Phoebe's engagement because I accidentally overheard one of their video-chat conversations."

"Damn." I mumbled, running a single hand through my miniature coiled, fro. "That's not reassuring."

"Don't worry about it, Gerald." Arnold smiled, inching towards the window. "I'm sure Phoebe will be delighted to know you flew half-way around the world to study abroad in the hopes of get her back."

I chuckled. "Some may call that romantic; others find it absolutely insane."

"Call it what you will, but I need my Shaka-Shaka chicken and unless you want Helga to wring your neck for keeping me longer than an hour, you better pay this lovely woman so we can head home."

I lightly punched Arnold before digging into my wallet and pulling out a wad of foreign currency I was not sure how to convert just yet. Hopefully he was right.

**A/N: Hey kittens! As promised, first chapter of the sequel. This story will be a bit longer than my first so I plan to go into more detail and give you all a more in-depth experience as to the relationship between Gerald and Phoebe. I hope you all liked this chapter. I have been eating onion rings and peanut butter all day and felt the urge to write. Now it's off to bed for me. I need a nap. I thank you all for reading and I am humbly grateful. I invite you to explore deeper into my dark, twisted fantasies. Just when you thought you figured me out, I leave you guessing. ^_^ Until later this week kittens!**

**-SensuallyPassionate**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I'm back kittens. Sorry for the wait. I have been resting and taking my time. I finally gathered the strength to write a chapter. I have these moments where writing is all I want to do and then there are the moments where I drag my feet and feel like my writing is crap. Also, this story will be loosely based on personal events to keep the realism so I hope no one gets offended. Hope this will be well worth the wait. Also, remember I said I had a surprise for my two loyal reviewers: Hanna Cabrodi and Nep2unne, well I did not forget and here it is. Also, I have a surprise for my two new loyal reviewers: MorganTaylorM3 and BlackRobb88. Enjoy my twisted dark fantasies! Happy Reading!**

**Phoebe**

"Good Morning; my name is Heyerdahl, Phoebe and I am a third year at The University of Tokyo." I pressed a fake smile, showing teeth as I gritted them slightly. I sighed. "To my left is our second year ambassador; also from University of Tokyo, Cabrodi, Hanna and to my right is first year from Tskuba, Neptune."

Neptune popped her gum, shuffling with her tattered, fingerless mittens in boredom as Hanna waved frantically at the hoard of incoming first-years. It was frigid cold and I could tell the thin, yellow knockoff fleece jacket Hanna had over her petite frame was not doing much in keeping her warm against the brisk, brutal winds of mid-winter Japan. She wore giant leopard print earmuffs to keep her frostbitten ears bundled but they were the cheap kind from a low-end retail shopping center within the Harajuku district while her mittens appeared to be even less dense than her jacket. Neptune- her nickname, no one truly knows her real name though it is speculated- was quite overdressed. Donning an ankle-length, black mink coat with cashmere gloves and a pink fluffy wool hat, I was surprised she was not damn near sweating underneath all the body heat. It was only thirty-five degrees today; much better than it was just last week when the annual blizzard swept through town. It was almost forty-below as hail and snow created everything from walking hazards to imminent death traps not only for students on campus trying to get to and from classes and dormitories with ease but for residents living nearby as well.

I was too exhausted to show my usual amounts of enthusiasm and did not feel up to being student ambassador at such an ungodly hour of the morning. I barely got any sleep these past few months and with it being my last semester of my undergraduate year, I was up to my neck in not only studies, exams, homework, and papers, but also my personal, domestic duties as well. Lately, my husband and I have been having marital issues and it has caused a rift between us and our family. I began cooking his favorite dishes every night in an attempt to keep him home more often than crammed in his office or out for drinks with his colleagues. He discovered that women will flock and throw themselves at his feet if he asked when the five-figure paychecks began to emerge after his promotion and I learned that being the ideal homemaker does not always ensure a happy home. The last thing I needed was to be fully awake, well-alert, and perky at nine in the morning when I wanted nothing more than to go back home and snuggle deep within the goose-feathered down comforters my father had bought as a house warming gift for the winter months. I was not quite yet acclimated to the harsh winters of Japan.

"Welcome, first-years!" Hanna giggle, still waving. "We welcome you to your home away from home, University of Tsukuba in Tokyo. Though Phoebe and I are second and third years at a fellow institution respectively, we are a part of the new student ambassador coalition and teamed with your fellow classmate, Neptune, to welcome you to your new home."

The large, pink bubble of gum Neptune had been blowing out of boredom for the past few minutes popped. "What she said."

I shook my head, forcing another smile. "I apologize for the sudden change of weather. Winter in Tokyo, Japan can be somewhat of an unexpected monster."

A hand rose. "Is the University of Tokyo similar to Tskuba?"

"Glad you asked. See, The University of Tokyo is no exactly a sister school but through the ambassador program, students throughout the-"

"What type of dumb question is that?" Neptune interrupted; earning small stares and a fit of giggling from the crowd of 'mean girls' from the back. The three blondes that sat in the back of the group have been causing trouble and sassing anyone and everyone since they arrived about an hour ago. One of them made fun of my glasses as the other commented on my sweater that I wore underneath my ski-jacket. I fought the urge to shush them and settled for quietly ignoring them. They reminded me so much of Rhonda when she was in middle-school that I grew unfazed. "The University of Tokyo is the Harvard University of Japan. One out of every thousand students gets in per semester. You fresh fish get to go here because your American school has a partnership with the University that offers stupid majors such as Fine Arts and Creative Literature."

One of the blondes in the back raised her hand. "I'm a Fine Arts major!"

Neptune rolled her eyes, beginning to chew her wad of gum. "Explains so much."

"What my dear friend is suggesting is that although we are not affiliated in any way, students from surrounding universities join the ambassador program to help new and foreign students adjust to college life in Tokyo."

Neptune rolled her eyes, popping her gum as Hanna erratically nodded. "Exactly what Phoebe said; also, take part in some of the campus programs as well. I am part and vice chairman of my University's Christian religious group: The Sunshine"

"Sounds lame." Another pop of gum; more giggling. "No one wants to be affiliated with a group that calls themselves sunshine."

"You don't know that, Neppy." Hanna put her gloved hands on her hips, slurring her words in her thick Dominican accent as she brushed a wave of her hair away from her face. "And for your information, we love calling ourselves 'The Sunshine'."

"Yeah, don't call me 'Neppy'."

"Why do you have to be so rude sometimes?"

She shrugged, popping her gum. "Not rude, just honest." Neptune looked down, then back at Hanna. "By the way, your boots are hideous."

I grew tired of their back and forth banter and suggested we begin the campus tour walk. Hanna Cabrodi was a vivacious, exuberant, happy-go-lucky, young woman from the Dominican Republic. I met her last year during an ancient Japanese politics discussion where she was in the back of the lecture hall going berserk because she could not read or write traditional Japanese fluently. It baffled me slightly for a moment because a requirement for admission was to be fluent in the language; but I decided to ignore it and help her with vast hours of tutoring and conversation like anyone with a good conscience would. I did not expect my time that I spent with Hanna to go beyond anything more than an acquaintance/classmate relationship because we were so different in personalities. Hanna was very extrovert, full-of-energy, and a bit feisty while I was almost the opposite; quiet, shy, and introvert. She reminded me of Helga in a few instances with her somewhat bossy, dominant personality and quick spitfire persona when provoked; which is why I think I gravitated so much towards her that she and I became such close friends. It went from us meeting up for a simple one hour tutoring session to hanging out during downtime after class or catching a quick bite to eat and getting to know each other with endless hours of conversation, crying, and plenty of laughter. She came from an unconventional family setting filled with alcoholism and emotional turmoil and it made me gain a newfound respect for her. She was still such a positive, very lively person that grabbed every moment life had to offer by the horns and jerk it along for the ride of a lifetime even after all the negative, heart wrenching things that may have happened in the past. She and Helga not only shared similar personalities but also familial upbringings; making them strong, independent women that I admired and highly respected. It made me wonder if she and I were such great friends because she was so much like Helga despite the high-pitched voice and animated personality. With Helga gone, I felt so lonely for the first few months in Japan. Everyone in Japan seemed to really prefer keeping to themselves and no one truly interacted with anyone inside or outside of classes. With Hanna, I felt like I found another lifelong friend that I could see myself with for the long hauls.

Neptune was the opposite. She was somewhat introvert, quiet, and deadpanned. She had her moments where she was full of energy and life but majority of them were sarcastic, comical, and to the point. I spent very little time outside of the ambassador program with Neptune because she keeps to herself and her own group of exclusive friends. Her backstory is uncertain but judging by her accent, tan, and thick, brown hair, I concluded she may or may not be from the Southern United States- Texas maybe. She was very much into food and could pack away the pounds like any man I have ever encountered. Though very petite, slim, and feminine, Neptune could eat. The only time I ever truly interacted with her was during last semester's welcome back karaoke-dokie night at a local karaoke bar in the Harajuku district. Neptune got into a small altercation with a middle-eastern gentleman that was set to be resolved in a sushi eating contest. Needless to say Neptune beat him by thirty-five seaweed rolls and three bowls of rice, earning applause and title of the eating champion of the karaoke bar, and still had enough energy to get up on stage and rock out to some Lady Gaga. It was a great night and truly the only night I ever seen Neptune really speak for such a long period of time. She was a typical American foreigner that had a heart and a love for Japanese culture. She embraced the Harajuku lifestyle with full-force; her brown locks becoming long, red waves of curls, her clothing going from ordinary t-shirt and jeans to loud, bright skirts, leather vests, with cutsey shirts sporting anime slogans and a vast array of buttons, as her simple, plain, makeup-less face morphed into an exact replica of a character from an infamous anime. I found her to be cute because the transformation suited her personality and not everyone- even some of the natives- could pull of the Harajuku look.

Neptune took a third of the group to tour the west side of campus and Hanna took another third to tour the east; leaving me with a third to show them the north and south corridors of the university. I was not all that familiar with the University of Tskuba but I made a point to do a full walk-through on my own so I could get a feel of where everything was located. In all honesty, compared to The University of Tokyo, Tskuba had better architecture and seemed more inviting than intimidating. My university had high-tech everything and just getting to class was like being in a rat maze looking for the slice of cheese. Here on Tskuba's campus, it felt much more spaced out and filled with welcoming, smiling students that would take the time out away from their gadgets and busy schedule to help a fellow classmate. I envied that to a certain degree. There were plenty of times where I became lost trying to navigate off that stupid map my campus bookstore have given me in order to brush me to the side to continue helping customers. It was refreshing to find an institution that had students look out and help one another. I showed the first-years their two libraries that were located on campus, a few of the lecture halls, administration buildings, cafeterias, and took a couple of breaks in between to ask and answer questions regarding student life at Tskuba. I felt like a complete shut-in because I could not answer none of them; showing how secluded and anti-social I have become. When I was not with Hanna, at school, or home, I was sticking my head in the books for an ounce of free time since I have grown to have very little of it since I started a new life in Japan. Being a housewife was not exactly what I expected myself to be at twenty-one but I could not complain. I just wish I had more of a social life and the gumption to actually get dolled up to go out to a local night-club or out to dinner with a friend aside from Hanna. As great and wonderful as she was, I felt like I could be a burden to her since she and Helga were the only contacts in my cellphone aside from family.

"We're going to take a quick ten minute break and meet back here in the center of the quad to meet back with the other groups and finish the tour." I spoke. I pointed my hoard of first-years to a few coffee vendors that were located on campus before I disappeared into the ladies washroom adjacent from the student center. I took a moment to myself to splash some water on my face and collect myself. Lately I have been getting anxiety attacks and been using Benadryl to help calm myself. It was technically allergy relief medication, but I knew a guy on campus that sold the medical strength tablets that could put you to sleep in a matter of seconds. I was too nervous to try speed and the sleep-aid tablets I was recommended to from a local pharmacist did very little for me. It went from me using a pill a week to get some extra hours of sleep in to me using about ten pills a day to give myself somewhat of a 'high'. Initially, it was supposed to help me catch some extra hours of sleep so I could allow my body to recuperate; but then it went from me wanting sleep to simply wanting the outer body experience. I never told my husband about it in fear of what he may think or say if he found out; my parents not knowing either in the horror of having them shame and ostracize me from our perfect family. It was hard being a student with a domestic life. Having a crappy marriage and a family I was not ready for did not help either. I reached into my pocket to grab my bag of pills, spilling out my phone. I saw I had ten missed calls and a bunch of texts. I sighed, dreading to look at my phone. My husband was a very possessive, controlling bastard that wanted me home by seven with his dinner prepared, ready on the table. I looked at the clock and saw it was five thirty. Tonight he was working a bit later than usual so I had about an extra hour to run my last few errands and get dinner on the stove by six thirty. Grabbing my phone, I exited the washroom and began making my way towards the quad. I reached into my pocket to grab one of my pills, but was knocked over. I was so preoccupied with finding my bag of pills that I did not see a group of people walking in front of me. I quickly apologized, reaching to grab everything that was dropped on my account.

"I am so sorry!" I squeaked, picking up a few textbooks, notebooks, and some small items from the snowy concrete. "I was not paying attention."

"Crimeny! Does everyone in Japan walk with their eyes closed!? I mean, this is the second time someone had run into me because they weren't looking!"

"It's alright, Helga. I'm sure it was an accident."

"Can it, Football head!"

Helga? Football head? I looked up from grabbing the last textbook to see my scowling best-friend, Helga G. Pataki, hovering over me in a pink parka, wool hat, and gloves; impatiently tapping her foot against a pad of snow. I lunged up to hug her, coming to tears. I thought I would never be happier to see that frowning face. "Helga!"

"Phoebes!?" she embraced me, looking stunned. "Crimeny, Phoebes, I had no idea it was you who ran into me like a complete moron."

I blushed. "I'm sorry, Helga. I am leading a tour and I was trying to rush back to get home." I turned to Arnold, giving him a small hug. "It's so great to see you all, but why are you here…in Japan?"

Helga shuffled her books back into order, putting them in her knapsack as she tried to deviate from the question. Arnold tried to muffle something in her direction but she swatted him away, telling him to give her and I a moment alone. She sighed. "Phoebe, so I emailed you saying I was coming to visit."

"Remembering!" I perked. "But that was not supposed to be for another two weeks. Did my father give you an earlier flight? Did he pay for Arnold too?"

She took a moment to respond, shuffling her feet against a nearby pile of snow. She kicked it delicately watching a few stray specs kiss the ice below. "No. You see, Phoebes, Arnoldo and a few of our mutual friends thought it would be a splendid idea to study abroad, you know, in the same country."

"For school?"

"Yes. I wanted to go to Brazil, but Arnold and…a few others chose Japan instead."

"Everyone is here!? In Japan!?"

She nodded, wrapping her arms around my shoulders as she began walking with me to the quad. "Yes. We all attend this fine institution of higher learning and funny story as to why I could not tell you I would be here for a semester…"

"Wait, wait, wait!" I waved my hands frantically, confused. I had to rub my temples to calm myself. Did she just say EVERYONE was in Japan? Attending The University of Tskuba, only a few miles away from my school? "You are here for an entire school semester, in Japan, and all of our friends are here?"

"Nothing gets past you, Phobes." She winked, clapping my shoulder harshly. I rubbed it to soothe the pain. The cold only magnified it, making it somewhat burn. "So yeah, back to what I was saying, Arnold and a few friends thought it would be great to come to Japan and study here…to see you…"

"Meaning…"

"Gerald."

My mouth dropped. Gerald was in Tokyo, Japan, studying abroad to see…me? I have not seen nor spoken to Gerald in almost four years. He had tried emailing me a few times because the number he had to my old cellphone was disconnected but I never responded. I could not bear the pain of reading a letter from the man I gave my heart to; only to have it broken and my soul to shatter into practically nothing because of another woman. The only reason I am somewhat sane is because of my husband. As faulty as he is, he helped revive me emotionally and mentally from my lowest point, staying with me, loving me like I was the only girl in the world he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. I never got that love and affection from Gerald. Though Gerald had his moments where he could be a true romantic, it was every blue moon. My husband was not afraid to send me roses every waking moment of the day, kiss me sporadically, or tell me every second of every moment he loved me. The thought of seeing Gerald was not exactly a pleasant one. What was I going to say? How was I going to react when I saw the only man I have ever loved besides me husband for the first time in four years? What would I wear? So many thoughts were running through my head that I drowned out Helga's long-winded speech about her flight over and slipped on a patch of ice. I hit the ground pretty hard, spraining my ankle from the awkward, distorted fall. Helga began helping me up, but I felt another person grab me from behind to lift me bridal style. All the pain I had coursing through my veins from my bruised ankle quickly vanished once I saw his face for the first time in almost four years. Our eyes locked as the hue in my cheeks from the icy winds of mid-winter Japan deepened. I tried to speak but I could not find the words to say, let alone know how to feel after seeing Gerald Martin Johanessen after almost four years. What made things worse was knowing I saw him for the first time in for years busting my butt on ice. Mortifying!

"Crimey, hair boy! Don't drop her; her ankle is red and swelling like a tomato!" Helga barked, checking my ankle from underneath my pant leg. I looked down and saw that my ankle was really swollen and that I could barely move it. The pain hit twice as hard as Helga tried to position it upright.

"Helga!" I screamed, swatting her hand away from my foot. "Don't do that!"

"Phoebes, I think you may have fractured your ankle." She spoke softly, "We need to get you to the campus clinic, pronto!"

"No!" I hollered, earning small stares from Arnold, Gerald, and Helga. I grew quiet. "I mean, I'm fine."

"Phoebe, your ankle looks pretty bad." Arnold spoke from behind Helga. He shoved his naked hands in his pocket. "We'll walk with you if you like; but you should get it checked out."

"I second Arnold on that, Phoebes. I think if you walk on it you will tear a ligament or something."

"You need to go to the clinic."

"No, I don't" I said with a finality laced within my icy voice. I needed to get home before my husband did. If he came home to an empty home, no dinner prepared, and found out that I went to the clinic and charged his credit card for an unnecessary medical bill, he would not be very happy. I tried to get down, putting pressure on my ankle. I yelped out in pain as I almost collapsed against the icy concrete of the quad. Gerald swooped me back into his arms and began walking back to the main campus. "W-where are you going? My tour group is that way."

"I'm taking you to the campus clinic, Phoebe. You can't walk."

"Yes I can!" I defended myself, turning around towards Helga and Arnold. "Helga, tell him I can walk."

She shook her head, folding her arms as she followed with Arnold in tow. "Sorry, Phoebes but hair boy has a point. You need to see a nurse right away before you do more harm than good."

"But, I need to get home and prepare dinner for my family!"

I felt Gerald tense up, clutching me harder as if he did not want to let go. I grew quiet as I figured fighting was futile. The walk to the campus clinic was a quiet one; small crunching of snow beneath snow boots as the playful conversation from Arnold and Helga echoed in the background. Gerald kept quiet, listening to one earbud of his music player, offering me the other. I respectfully declined, clinging my arms around his neck for added measure. I rested my head upon his shoulders as we walked, smelling his cologne and his personal scent. He smelled the same and it brought back so many fond memories. I noticed he looked relatively the same; only growing a few inches taller, having more of a muscular frame from the sports I heard he played in college, and his small afro he wore in high-school now filled with short, coiled, curls that suited him well. There were moments where our eyes would meet but I quickly turned away, blushing. I was self-conscience as to how I positioned myself in his arms. I constantly kept asking him if I was too heavy to carry but he would simply ignore me, continuing to walk until we reached the clinic. Helga alerted a nurse about the incident and showed us to a vacant room to see one of the campus doctors they had on call.

Gerald gently rested me upon the hospital bed and began shedding his coat. Helga grabbed Arnold to go get a cup of coffee, but I knew she was trying to give Gerald and I time to reconnect. There was a deathly silence intertwined within the air that even our breathing could be heard over the soft sounds of the clinic. I cleared my throat, shrugging off my ski-jacket. "T-Thank you for carrying me."

He nodded but remained just as quiet as he was the entire walk over. "How have you been?"

"Well, yourself?"

"Same."

There was another pregnant pause. I began to fiddle with a few strands of my sweater, pulling at a few to keep myself from looking at the man across from me. I could feel my face become hot as my heart began to pound in my ears. I tried to take a few shallow breaths but to no avail. Gerald seemed more into his phone than he was with me. I bit my bottom lip, gnawing gently in frustration. I did not understand why it bothered me the way it did that he was paying little attention to me but it really got me flustered. "What brings you to Japan?"

He finally looked up from his touchscreen, grinning. "Study abroad, international relations, politics, the culture, the usual."

"Oh."

"…Heard you were married…" he drew in a sharp breath. "Congratulations. I was not made aware until recently."

"It's nothing I wanted very many people to know about." I spoke gently, looking into his eyes filled with hurt. I wanted to hug him, kiss him just like we used to do when I was seventeen. "I hear you received a scholarship to play basketball at NHU."

He smiled, clearly proud. He had every right to be. Gerald's parent's made very little and the scholarship greatly increased his chances of attending college. Gerald was skilled athletically, but was also very intelligent. Helga told me in countless of emails and video-chats that Gerald was offered full admission to John Marshall law school in the fall for his high LSAT scores and extracurricular work on their universities debate team and student council. I was proud of him. "Yeah, I also got another scholarship to law school for the fall."

"Congratulations."

"Thanks…means so much coming from you personally."

There was more silence, almost awkward silence. I never been in an awkward situation such as this one; even the night I lost my virginity went much smoother. I began to sway my feet back and forth, ignoring the alternating pain in my right foot. I took a good look at it and saw my foot was the size of a small melon. It did not look too good either. "Gerald…"

"How is your husband?" he asked. "You have not said much about him."

"I tend to keep my personal life personal if you don't mind."

I could tell that stung him a bit by the way he shrugged me off, turning his attention back to his phone. I was thankful the doctor had come in just in time. "Well, hello, Phoebe!"

Oh crap! "Fujoka-sama, hello!"

He shook Gerald's hand before embracing me in a light hug. "What on earth are you doing here and not at your husband's family clinic?"

I swallowed hard, watching Gerald within my peripheral gag slightly at the sound of the word husband. "I was on campus doing a tour walk through and I slipped on a patch of ice."

"Oh dear." He took out his spectacles, taking a quick glance over my ankle. He shook his head in dismay before taking out his clipboard to write a few notes. "I think you may have a severe sprain or a fracture. It is not broke, thank Kami, but you will need crutches for a week for so."

I watched in silence as he pulled up a chair to get a better angle to further examine my foot. I looked up to Gerald protectively watching over me; peering over the doctor's shoulders to make sure no foul play was suspected. I fought a small smile as my heart fluttered, familiar sensations mixed with suppressed feelings resurfacing as I sat a few inches from the only man I truly loved aside from my husband. I winced slightly as a cold compress was placed against the swollen tissue, the Fujoka-sama reaching inside his medical cabinet for some gauze. "Does Kato know you are here?"

I shook my head. "No, I have yet to call him."

"I will take care of it." He smiled. "How is Haruhi?"

My breathing slowed, palms growing steady as the pink elephant in the room was finally addressed. Only Helga and my family knew about Haruhi and I made Helga swear to keep it a secret until I was ready to tell everyone about her…even Gerald. "Uh…she is well…."

"Is Kato picking her up from daycare? I can call to make arrangements for my daughter to swing by on her way from work if you like."

"That's won't be nesscary, Fujoka-sama." I nervously laughed, eyeing Gerald as he looked back and forth between the doctor and I. I tried to change subjects. "How is Kasumi?"

"Well, thank you for asking. She is developing quite well."

I watched in painstaking agony as the last layer of gauze was applied around my ankle; a small metal clip holding it into place as Fujoka-sama placed a small ice-pack underneath to keep the swelling to a minimum. He quickly told me I had nothing to worry about before he went to go fill a prescription for a month supply of ibuprofen to alleviate some of the pain. Before he left, Gerald thanked the man for his time and was given a run down on the severity of my ankle sprain through intensely detailed notes and information from a pamphlet Fujoka-sama gave him. It was not until he got half-way down the hall that he shouted out for me to take care and tell my _daughter_ hello for him. Gerald's expression read it all, and he quickly dismissed himself; grabbing the coffee Helga suddenly had brought back from the cafeteria as he dragged Arnold down the hallway with him. I reached into my pocket, popped a Benadryl, and wished it would all go away.


	3. Chapter 3

**Gerald**

"Calm down, Gerald."

"No, Arnold; you just shut the hell up and let me think."

I watched him sigh, taking another sip from his mug. I took a small look around to make sure I did not have another audience. Try as I may, I could not keep my voice down; especially in a fit of rage. Arnold didn't seem to be fazed at all by it but did occasionally ask for me to lower my tone because it sent the wrong message to the nosey neighbors that lived in the room next to ours. "You need to get a grip."

"Easy for you to say." I scoffed. I took a sip of my own from my mug of coffee, blowing gently. "You're girlfriend isn't married to another man nor is she a mother to a three year old."

Arnold shrugged, taking another sip. I wanted to slap the nonchalant attitude right out of him. Ever since I saw Phoebe two weeks ago, I have been tripping out about the fact that the woman I risked my life and freedom for was now a mother and a wife to another man. I kept replaying the scene in my head; the day I went and technically hijacked an airplane. I was truly lucky my father had a friend that was the brother-in-law to a wealthy, bad-ass lawyer that could drop majority of the charges against me. I was facing almost twenty years, a hefty fine, and risk of being classified as a terrorist; thus having my citizenship revoked. Arnold was facing similar charges but also for assault. I could never truly repay Arnold for what he did that day. I knew before he was more than a friend to me but like family, but after that incident I knew Arnold was more than that. He was blood. I just could not understand where I went wrong. I spent over $5,000 to buy Phoebe a stupid promise ring from the overpriced Tiffany's jewelry store only to have her reject me in front of not only an audience but her family. I left understanding but also a broken man. How could I have been so stupid?

"Gerald, you been going at this for two weeks now. When are you going to give it a rest?"

"When I finally realize this isn't a dream."

Arnold shook his head. "Gerald, maybe it's time you move on. I was in favor of you going after Phoebe but with the sudden change of events, maybe it's best you just give up your pursuit and focus on being realistic."

I grew mute, staring outside the coffee house window into the streets of downtown Tokyo. It was beginning to snow. "Maybe you're right man; but I can't get Phoebe out of my system. I love that girl."

"She's married with a kid, Gerald." Arnold shot me a warm, understanding smile. "She has her life now it's time you get yours."

Arnold had a point. For almost four years, I have been pawning over Phoebe as if she were an addiction. The main reason I became so promiscuous was because I wanted to get Phoebe out of my system. I thought that by me sleeping with different women every night I would eventually forget about the love of my life. The messed up part was by me sticking my 'Johanessen' in every woman on campus, it only deepened the desire for her. The women began to all look alike, talk alike, dress alike. Their skin against my skin began to feel more like sandpaper than velvet as months went on. The sex grew mundane and routine. Their names all became unnecessary as their personal attributes became unwanted. Every night that I lay with a different woman, I would think of Phoebe. When they whispered sweet nothings into my ear I would picture Phoebe. During intimacy, I would picture Phoebe. I even called out her name one moment during sex with my chemistry lab partner that she decided it was best she leave. I didn't object either. Just knowing she has a child by another man is heart wrenching enough; but to know she married someone after only knowing him for a little over three years makes my blood boil. Phoebe and I have known each other twelve years. How could we have allowed us to drift apart so quickly in such a short time?

"Gerald?" Arnold questioned, earning a small glance. "You alright? You been staring at the snow for almost five minutes."

"Yeah." I lied, sighing. "I'm cool. I think I'm just going to head back to the dorms early."

"Sure? Want me to come with?"

I shook my head, beginning to pack my belongings and place them in my backpack. Arnold and I originally came here to study for our political-science exam we had next week. Arnold needed some help on the theory of cronyism and I needed to brush up on the Objectivism theory of Ayn Rand. Arnold and I did our signature handshake and I bid him farewell. I knew he wanted to come and keep me company but I honestly just wanted to be alone for a while. I needed time to think, breath, process everything that has been happening these past few weeks. I traveled halfway around the world to try and win back the love of my life, Phoebe Heyerdahl, and turns out she is married with a daughter. The thought did cross my mind as to if the little girl could be mine, but I quickly dismissed it when I did the math. Before Phoebe left, she and I had not had sex in almost two months. If she was pregnant, she would have told me and the little girl would be four, not three. Plus, the picture Helga showed me Phoebe's daughter, Haruhi, proved me wrong as well. Where bouncy, soft black curls should be flowed long, raven pigtails as brown eyes were now green while the soft caramel complexion she would grace is a soft, creamy ivory. I sighed, running a hand through my coiled fro as I walked into the early evening of Japan. I hugged my jacket closer to my frame, my scarf nestling deeper onto my chest to keep the brutal kiss of winter out. I began thinking again. If I was not so caught up in Ariel and truly accepted Phoebe's family, we would still be together and I she would bear my last name as her daughter would be ours. I knew Phoebe's family could never truly accept me for being African-American, but I detested the fact that she never defended her relationship with me. I could deal with the ignorance and bigotry of her folks, just not her spineless persona that made me want to strangle her sometimes because she never spoke her mind. Ariel possessed the qualities Phoebe lacked and I grew infatuated with the idea of having a strong woman; not necessarily with Ariel. Though I loved her, I knew my heart truly rested with Phoebe and what I was doing to Ariel was not only disrespectful, but hurtful.

I thought about taking the train back to the dorm but seeing as how I was not quite acclimated to the Japanese transportation system- let alone Japan itself- I decided to the take the safe route. I took out my wallet, ready to hail a cab back home before I caught sight of a familiar woman with glasses. She was standing on a railing next to an ice-skating rink across the street, smiling at a little girl attempt to spin around on a pair of white, pink bowed skates. My heart began to race, the pounding hitting my ears like an African bass drum as I decided to say hello. I waited for traffic to clear, as well as my mind, before I walked over beside her. I wanted to make sure it was Phoebe first before I spoke; craning my neck behind a tree to see if those turquoise glasses were in fact the ones I grew to love and it was. I felt silly technically 'spying' on Phoebe but I was not exactly prepared to see her again, especially after finding out she was married. I'm sure her husband has at least heard about me, so the last thing I wanted to was cause drama.

Taking a deep breath, I tapped her shoulder. She spun around with immediate alarm that quickly dissipated into small happiness. I gazed at her, grinning. Her short locks she would signature all throughout middle-school and high-school were now cascading down her back. Her oval frames were now rectangular but still in her notorious shade of blue. I noticed she had a fuller bust and wider hips- probably from childbirth- as her clothes hugged her nicely. She wore a pair of denim jeans, a white, turtleneck sweater, and a pink bubble vest with blue mittens and earmuffs. She was as gorgeous as ever, better than I remembered and it ignited a forbidden fire of lust and raw, ravenous carnal energy that I had to subdue. "Hey, Phoebe."

She grinned, pushing a small strand of hair away from her face. "Gerald….I'm surprised you came over to talk to me."

I raised a single brow, interest piqued. "You saw me across the street?"

She nodded, bashful . "Yes. I was going to take Haruhi to get some hot chocolate before we went skating but I saw you and Arnold so I decided it was best if I waited until you both left."

"You know you I would have spoken to you regardless, right?"

She shrugged. "I don't know actually. Our last meeting wasn't exactly picturesque."

"I apologize for leaving the way I did." I paused, thinking of the right words to say. I felt bad immediately after I left the doctor's office, but I couldn't force myself to go back there and face the sudden fact that the only woman I ever truly loved belonged to someone else. I took a small glance at the little girl with wide, green eyes, staring confusedly at me and Phoebe. My heart melted. "Is this…Haruhi?"

Phoebe nodded, clearly beaming. She had a mother's glow that I found to look exceptional on her. "Say hello to my good friend Gerald, Haruhi."

"Hello." She said in broken English. She smiled for added measure and to display two missing bottom teeth. She was precious. "My name is Haruhi."

"Nice to meet you." I smiled, getting to eye-level to shake her gloved hand. "I'm Gerald."

"I know!" she exclaimed happily, almost falling. She sneezed into her gloves before wiping it on her pink elephant sweater. "My mommy talks about you to herself a lot."

"Really now?"

She nodded. "Yes, my daddy doesn't like hearing it though."

"Haruhi!" Phoebe barked, warningly. I looked between Phoebe and her spitting image before giving a small laugh. One thing I loved and also hated about children were that they were sometimes too honest at the most awkward of moments. "Shizukana!"

"But mommy, I just said you talk about him a lot. You do! You always say a lot when daddy isn't home!"

"Shizukana!"

I let out a nervous cough before I turned to bright-red Phoebe. She was mumbling some Japanese under her breath, avoiding looking at me directly. I grabbed her hand. "It's alright; your secret is safe with me."

Phoebe froze for a moment, unsure of how to respond before she snatched her hand away from me and took a step backwards. She cleared her throat. "We better go, huh, Haruhi?"

The little girl began to whine, stomping her blades against the ice angrily. She huffed before crossing her arms. "But we just got here! You promised we could stay longer than last time."

"Haruhi, behave."

The girl screamed. "You promised we could stay because daddy is always too busy to take us anywhere! He's always with that stuffy lady and not us!"

That caught my attention, earning a stare from Phoebe. Her face grew hot as she began trying to console the child. When she took off her mittens, I suddenly noticed Phoebe was not wearing her wedding band or her ring and she wasn't wearing them last time either. I remember Helga vaguely telling Arnold and I that although Phoebe is married, it was not to be assumed she was happily married. I didn't realize what that meant. I know Phoebe married rather young and had a baby at an early age, but I figured it was because she found something in a guy that she could not get from me personally. I began to wonder if Phoebe's husband was committing adultery and neglecting his family. The mere thought made me grow irate, almost wanting to punch something or someone in particular. My father had an affair on my mother when back during my P.S.118 years. I would often see him with some woman he said he 'worked' with a lot and he would often tell me and Jaime-O not to tell our mother that he would be going out with this woman on long periods on end. Jaime-O was the first to suspect something when he noticed his secret condom stash was occasionally running low. He did not suspect me because I was still rather young and only thought of my father because it was not the first time our father asked to borrow protection from him. The night we caught him was the evening Jaime-O was supposed to use our father's car to drive me to the airport for the class trip to San Lorenzo. In the backseat was my father getting a blowjob from the mystery woman, eyes glued shut as his palms guided her head underneath the cloak of night. He caught a glimpse of Jaime-O and I starring before we dashed back into the house. When he entered, he gave us a silent command to keep the incident between the men and only and to never tell our mother. Since then, I kept my mouth shut but always subconsciously figured infidelity was the norm since my father was the one who introduced the idea to me. Jaime-O has not been able to keep a steady girlfriend since Keisha and I have been studding myself before and after Phoebe. It wasn't until I saw the hurt in Phoebe's eyes when I told her about my night with Ariel one afternoon after a fight that I knew what I was doing was wrong.

I clenched a fist, gritting my teeth. "What do you mean stuffy lady?"

"It's none of your concern, Gerald." Phoebe snapped, snatching Haruhi from the ice before she ordered her to switch her skates for her snow boots. "My marriage is my marriage."

"I'm just concerned, Phoebe."

"Well don't be. I have gotten used to this behavior." She immediately covered her mouth, cursing slightly. "Look, I better go. It was nice seeing you."

I reached out for her hand, yanking her closer to me. She squeaked as she landed against my chest, breasts pushed against my jacket as her doe eyes were glazed over with hidden tears. I resisted the urge to kiss her. "Phoebe, don't run away from me."

"Gerald…"

"Is he cheating on you?"

"Gerald…"

"Is he Phoebe?"

"Gerald!" she roared, pushing away from me. "Stop it! Stop acting like you give a care. I'm used to infidelity, alright? I was cheated on by you so what makes Kato any different?"

I grew silent, almost lifeless upon hearing that. I bit my bottom lip, unsure of what to say next. I knew I hurt Phoebe but I never realized how deep the wounds truly were. Tonight I was made aware. "Phoebe…"

"Just stop it, right now! My marriage is my concern so please respectfully just allow me to live my life as I choose to live it."

"But are you happy?"

"Happiness is relative, Gerald. It doesn't matter how I feel, as long as Kato brings in the money to support and feed his family. He can screw any woman he wants as long as he just comes home at night."

I watched Phoebe slowly begin to break down, fighting those glazed over tears. Haruhi sat on a nearby bench silent, looking at her skates move gently with the mid-winter breeze. I reached out to touch her but she violently pulled away, jerking her shoulder. She turned her back on me and raced towards Haruhi, saying something in her mother tongue before turning to face me. "It was nice seeing you, Gerald; but I need to get Haruhi home. She has history homework."

"Did you want me to hitch you a cab?" I offered, practically pleading. "I have plenty of funds. I'm not sure how to work the yen system but I can give you whatever you need."

She shook her head, grabbing Haruhi' hand. "I appreciate the gesture but it won't be necessary. Haruhi and I will just take the bullet train."

I stood by as I watched Phoebe begin to walk off with Haruhi into the distance before I called out to her. She turned around slowly, careful to not look directly at me. I never seen Phoebe look and feel this…defeated. "What are you doing Sunday? It's the only day that everyone is free. No school for either of us and I don't have to work. Are you free?"

"Why?"

"I thought maybe I could take you and Haruhi out for an afternoon. It's this winter carnival they are hosting on campus and I thought it would be nice if you and Haruhi would attend."

I watched the little girl's eyes light up at the word 'carnival', a huge smile curving upon her lips. She bagn jumping up and down. "Oh, mommy, can we?"

"I don't know…"

"I'll pay for everything; the food, the rides, the games, just show up and I'll take care of it all."

"Do you have enough money for that, Gerald?" She asked, genuinely concerned. "I am capable of paying for myself and Haruhi."

"I'm sure you can but I want to." I insisted, stepping closer to the two. "Just allow me this opportunity to show you two a good time."

"Mommy, can we go?!"

"Haruhi!" Phoebe pleaded, looking down at the hyperactive three-year old. "Please."

I smiled. "See, Haruhi is down for it. How about 'mommy'?"

She stared at me for a long time before answering. She drew in a sharp breath, nodding her head. Haruhi began jumping up and down before ecstatically clapping her hands like a baby seal. I gave Phoebe the flyer concerning the carnival I had in my backpack before I programmed my number into her cellphone. She was hesitant at first to take it but I insisted, saying that it could be purely for emergency purposes only if need be. I gave Haruhi a high-five before embracing Phoebe in a final hug, embracing her tightly as I took in a whiff of her perfume. I did not want to let her go. She turned to wave goodbye as she and Haruhi began to wonder off towards the train platform a few yards away from the rink. I stood there, watching their shadows for a while before I hailed myself a cab to head home. All I could think about was Phoebe and Haruhi. I never seen Phoebe looked so…lifeless in her eyes. Just by touching her I could feel she was not as warm and chirpy as she normally would have been. Phoebe used to radiate happiness and cheerfulness. Now, she is a shell of her former self. Her glowing skin is now much paler than usual, she had bags under her eyelids, and her spirit had been shattered along with her fragile heart. I felt a wave of guilt begin to wash over me as I entered the cab, clutching my heart as I ordered the driver in the right direction. I was the first relationship Phoebe ever experienced, and I ruined the opportunity I had with her by my own insatiable desires. I felt myself become queasy at the thought. Phoebe was no longer the young girl I grew up with, but now a scorned, bitter woman. How could I do that to someone I loved, cared for more than life itself? I forced myself to not dwell on the negatives and focus on the more positive side. I had my first date with Phoebe in over three years and I was not going to screw this up. I was never a believer in fate or destiny, let alone second chances at love…until now.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I know, I know, two updates in one day? Yes, I love you guys that much AND I will be quite the busy bee this week so I will be taking a small hiatus. Don't panic, I shall update in two weeks, but with my first week of Senior year done, I am up to my neck in papers, homework, and studying for this damn GRE test. College sucks. SN: To BlackRob88, I figured you would do as much. I think you will like he next chappy chapter hon ;-). And MorganTaylorM3, I haven't forgotten u missy. Also, if you haven't noticed, I am a Political-Science major and I LOVE talking about it so feel free to call me a nerd. I'm glad you all like this story as much as I enjoy writing it. Enjoy your weekend and holidays and I hope you all eat some good barbeque. I know I am. I have been craving barbeque sauce and peanut butter. Don't judge, I'm pregnant. Enjoy my twisted dark fantasies. Happy Reading!**

**WARNING: SEMI-GRAPHIC CONTENT. **

**Phoebe**

I took one last look in the mirror before pronouncing that I was ready. I didn't want to be too long because it was already late, the sitter needed to be home by two in order to make it on time for classes in the morning by seven, and I had my graduate college entrance exams to study for. I was planning on using my degree in sociology and going into Public-Health. I found that by using my sociology degree and going into the Public Health field, I could be more of a valuable asset in studying social behaviors that cause harm to the body and overall health of a population. I mainly wanted to work with minority groups such as Latinos and African-Americans to get to the root of social disarray within their communities. Ever since I dated Gerald, I have become fascinated in learning why the vast disparities in health, education, and social opportunities exist. I never truly realized how skewed some of the resources were to ethnic minorities-even Asian. I was initially a psychology major but I switched because for the life of me I could not stay awake for more than ten minutes. The talk of chemical imbalance within the brain and opiates only get a girl so much energy.

I took a quick spin and put on my pumps. The red, lace dress I wore was figure-flattering; extenuating my newfound curves and ample bosom I received from childrearing and endless nights of nursing a very fidgety Haruhi. The dress was a deep, blood red with lace embroidery and a deep V-neck plunge that showed my breasts in all of their glory. I allowed my hair to remain straight and rest down my back while I settled for a deep, red lip, some blush, eye-liner, and mascara instead of my full face I usually wear when I go out. It's very seldom I get dressed up but when I do I tend to look my best. The only times I ever found a reason to get dolled up was when Kato invited me to a few of his work-related functions. It was rare he ever went, but when he did it was expected he bring his wife and not his obvious, yet inconceivable mistress. I popped in a quick peppermint and called down to Gerald standing in the foyer that I was ready.

Initially I was not planning to take him up on his offer in going to a club with Arnold, Helga, and the gang for a little 'fun' but after the day we had, I could not say no. Today reminded me of when Gerald and I were seventeen, when we were at our peak in love and our relationship was at its highest. He was the perfect gentleman; attending to not only my needs but as well as Haruhi's. I was a bit anxious in allowing her to spend time with Gerald in fear of having her project her desires for a father figure onto him unintentionally. Kato was a good father, but was hardly ever home. His work schedule prevented him from having Sunday's off, holidays on certain occasions, even vacations. The money he made was good, but not worth neglecting his family over. Today was the first day in a long time that I felt like a family. I knew Gerald would turn out to be a perfect father someday, but seeing him with Haruhi made me ponder on if I had done things a bit differently.

"_Can I have some cotton candy?!" _

_I shook my head, giving Haruhi a steamed pork dumpling dipped in soy sauce. "No sugar. You just had some juice."_

"_But mommy, I want cotton candy!"_

"_What's a little cotton candy, Phoebe?" Gerald cosigned, grinning as he fed Haruhi a small piece. She happily obliged and allowed the confectionary to melt on her tongue instantly. I rolled my eyes._

"_She is going to get hyped on sugar and I am the one who will have to deal with it, not you."_

"_Who says I won't?" he countered, taking a small bite out of his large wad of bubble-gum pink cotton candy. He winked at me before giving Haruhi a huge piece of her own to finish off. I sighed, taking a small bite out of my steamed dumpling. _

"_Fine. But when she is bouncing everywhere, I will call you to fix it."_

"_As long as that is a promise."_

_I remained quiet as I watched him lift Haruhi upon his shoulder and walk over towards one of the many booths to play a game. I glanced at my purse and stared at the stuffed bear, crocodile, and dragon Gerald had already won Haruhi. He won them all at ring toss, bottle toss, and basketball respectively. Towards the end of the basketball game, he gained quite a small following and had his picture taken with a few local athletes that admired his skilled. A few of them thought he was a famous U.S. player and asked for his autograph in which he certainly did not disappoint. I smiled in memory, watching from the sidelines as Gerald began winning the water-racing game at the booth. Haruhi cheered happily as his little motor boat sped past all of its competitors to hit the little gold bell at the very top. Once the large, red flashing light went off and screamed 'winner' Haruhi hugged Gerald by his neck as she chose a stuffed panda bear this time as her prize. After their boat game, Haruhi directed Gerald to another booth where there were racing koi fish. Of course Gerald's fish won and instead of a stuffed animal, Haruhi was allowed to take one of the koi fish as a prize. I shot her thumbs up as she began shaking the bag enthusiastically at the thought of her very first pet. Kato and I were supposed to buy her a puppy as she grew older, but never truly got around to it. _

_After the koi fish race, there was a turtle race, then a balloon popping contest, then finally a fun house photo booth. I was reluctant to take the photographs but Gerald Haruhi insisted, rather shoving me into the dark booth to take pictures. We made funny faces, scary faces, goofy faces, side faces, every expression thought of until our cheeks grew sore. The last photograph was of me, Gerald, and Haruhi, smiling as if we were one big family. I chose that as my favorite. _

"_Mommy, can I keep the pictures and put them on my wall?"_

_My heart dropped at the very thought. If Kato even found out I was with Gerald today and not with Helga as I originally told him, he would certainly come home in rage. Though Kato never expressed any violence against me, he had a temper that made me fearful of the day where he may think to lay hands on me. One evening, he came home from work to no dinner prepared. I was exhausted from all day course work, helping Haruhi with her homework and spending time with her, as well as work. I used to be a service clerk at a local convenience store before Kato made me quit to focus more on my domestic duties. I was asleep at the kitchen table when I heard him slam the door. I shot up to see what was going on but was not fast enough before he yanked me by my ponytail and dragged me into the kitchen. He was drunk which is why I did not make a big fuss over it but I vowed to never experience it again._

"_I'll keep these, honey." I spoke gently, taking one of the two strips of photographs and putting them into my purse. I gave the other strip to Gerald to keep. "I'll frame them in a special place, okay?"_

"_Okay!" she nodded happily, beginning to skip off towards another food stand. This time she wanted frozen yogurt. _

_Gerald shoved his left hand in his pocket before draping his right arm around me, bringing us closer together. Before I could even question it, he placed a small kiss on my cheek. I grew still, almost lifeless. I felt a familiar spark that I thought died a long time ago. "G-Gerald…"_

"_Consider it a 'Thank You'."_

"_For?"_

"_Coming out this afternoon; I know you had your doubts."_

"_Of course I did." I muffled, fixing my wool hat to keep the sudden breeze from nipping at my ears. "I hope you did not take offense."_

_He shook his head. "No, it was to be expected; however, I am just glad you and Haruhi came out. I really wanted to get to know her…and you all over again."_

_That shocked me. "You wanted to get to know my…daughter?"_

"_Yes, why is that so hard to believe?"_

_I shrugged, beginning to walk towards the frozen yogurt stand where Haruhi impatiently awaited her strawberry treat. I signaled to her to hold on for a minute and stop giving the owner of the booth such a hassle. I knew how Haruhi could get once she grew hungry. "I guess I just never figured anyone would make a conscience effort to get to know someone's kid…especially an…ex."_

_There was a small pause before either of us spoke. Gerald reached out to grab my bare hand, kissing it gently. "Haruhi is a part of you, therefore if I want to reconnect with you make you happy, I will do the same for Haruhi." He paused, taking a quick glance at Haruhi, waving. She waved back frantically. "Besides, I'm already in love with her…but that's not surprising."_

"_Oh?" I questioned. "And why is that?"_

_He winked before treading off to meet Haruhi at the frozen yogurt stand. "Because it didn't take long for me to fall in love with her mother."_

I took the strip of pictures from the carnival out of my purse, gazing at them lovingly. Though I thought I would never see Gerald Johanessen again, I never truly got over him. I forced myself to bury my feelings under the hurt and paint he caused me but I never dealt with the issues head on. I tended to avoid them; even with Kato. When I married Kato, it was not because of love but because I was pregnant with Haruhi. Our families wanted to see us together long before I moved to Japan. He was the sexy Asian man at Rhonda's party that I spilled punch all over as well as the same guy that came over my house for dinner when I invited Gerald over the evening he and my father got into a verbal altercation. I found out he was only visiting family for a few weeks but lived and went to school in Tokyo. Once his parents learned about my arrival, they immediately felt it was only proper to set us up. I was not ready for any type of relationship, let alone commitment to another person. I was still so stuck on my breakup with Gerald to even focus on another human being. However, our families insisted and one date turned into two, then three, then four, then family gatherings, then sleeping over, then finally sex. I latched onto Kato a lot quicker than I hoped I would; mainly because I was still hurt by Gerald and at the time, Kato looked nothing short than my prince in shining Armani. However, once he learned about my pregnancy, my pumpkin turned back into dust as the clock stroked midnight. The gentleman I knew was now an angry, vicious, selfish creature that would often curse me for ruining his life. We only married because my mother and father did not want me to have a child in wedlock so they decided it best we marry and find ways to make our marriage everlasting. I fingered the strip of pictures between my thumb before I placed them deep inside my intimates drawer. I took once last glance at myself, grabbed my jacket, and headed downstairs to meet a handsome Gerald dressed in an all-black ensemble that just made him look too irresistible. I had to contain myself as I scanned over his black button-down towards his black slacks. He certainly toned since the last time we seen each other.

The ride to the club was a short one, only about ten minutes that were filled with light conversation and laughter about the day Gerald and I had. He seemed to really enjoy being in Haruhi's company and relished in the fact that I allowed him to spend time with me and my daughter. The conversation almost steered into something serious- our breakup- but the loud, vibrating bass of loud techno and j-pop drowned it out. I saw Helga and Arnold wave towards Gerald and I as we parked the car. Helga was in a skin-tight pink halter dress and yellow pumps as Arnold wore a pair of jeans, a nice blue and red stripped button-up, and Dockers. We followed them in shortly after to be met with the loud, sweaty bas of _Far East Movement _and _Utada_. Gerald reached behind him to grab my hand as he led us through the crowd over to the table where Arnold and Helga sat. I passed by a few of our friends but they were too busy dancing to notice Gerald and I pass them through the crowd. I began to feel uneasy. I was never a party kind of girl and always found parties somewhat intimidating. The only party I ever really went to was Rhonda's back in senior year of high-school when Helga dragged me against my will in the most provocative outfit she could muster. The thought of guys eyeing me made me feel like a sex object and I was far beyond that. Though my outfit did not help in the least, it still was much more fabric than most of the women that gyrated beside me.

"Phoebes, you made it!" Helga squeaked, sipping on a vodka and cranberry. "Here, let me get your drink for you."

Helga reached in front of me to pour a shot glass full of liquor before she flicked her wrist, twitching her left ring-finger. I noticed it was no longer bare, but graced a rather gorgeous princess cut diamond laced within a white-gold band. I squealed as I grabbed her hand, scanning her finger for any flaws. The ring was beautiful. "Helga, congratulations!"

"Thank you, Phoebes." She embraced me in a small hug as Gerald congratulated Arnold with their signature handshake they had since they were kids. "Finally ol' Football head proposed. Took him long enough."

Arnold chuckled, kissing Helga on the cheek. "I was going to propose two weeks ago but things happened." He said, looking at Gerald. Gerald just grabbed a beer from the table, shrugging.

"Not my fault, man. I told you to give me the keys to the car but you insisted you would be able tom pick me up."

"How did he propose?"

Helga began whispering in my ear, earning small gasps and fits of giggles. I never knew Arnold could be so…creative. Apparently it involved whip cream, cherry topping, and soy sauce. I smiled, reaching to hug Arnold. "Congrats. I am so happy for you two. Any plans to celebrate?"

Helga lifted a mischievous brow before gnawing at her bottom lip, reaching for Arnold's crotch; giving it a quick squeeze to his dismay. "If ol' Football head would stop being so prude, we could celebrate right now."

"Helga!" he shouted, clearly embarrassed. Gerald and I snickered. "We are in public!"

"So? There are hundreds of people grinding on each other as we speak so why can't we take it a simple step further." She paused, leaning towards Arnold's right ear, purring as she straddled him. "All you have to do is move my panties aside and…"

"Helga!"

"Phoebe, maybe we should get our own table and allow these love birds to…celebrate." Gerald grumbled, laughing as he stood to grab my hand and lead me towards an empty table a few feet right.

I watched helplessly as I was pulled away from the groping couple and into an empty booth filled with liquor and the stale smoke of cigarettes. The music began to grow louder as the ceiling lights went out, leaving only neon-colored strobe lights to strike every crevice of the club. My favorite song by Crystal Kay '_Candy'_ began to blast through the speakers and infect me with its plagued rhythm. I took a quick shot before I reached out to the reluctant Gerald and dragged him to the dance floor. He was stiff as a board before I had to force him to move with the rhythm. I never understood why men always felt shy in dancing in public but I was not going to just allow Gerald to stand there. He began doing the robot and the cabbage patch kid, earning a fit of ignorant laughter from me in good-hearted fun. I decided to put him out of his misery and began grinding my hips against his to the sweet rhythmic sounds of a bass drum.

Gerald turned me around and wrapped his arms around me, lowering his palms to the girth of my hips and backside; taking a small squeeze. I reached and arm back and allowed my body to flow in sync with his to the beat of the DJ. I did not mind that Gerald began suckling on my neck and palming my breasts because the way that things were going, I did not want it to stop. The heat made my skin crawl, the sweat causing the thin fabric of my dress to cling to every curve my body had to offer as the sensual, orchestrated movements between Gerald's groin and my plump backside made me…lustful. I have not had the fire for a man in almost two years that I almost forgot how great it felt. Gerald's hands glided against my erected nipples, landing within the valley of my breasts, to the fine contours of my taunt stomach, then finally the mountains of my thighs. I let out a small cannibalistic growl as he clung me closer, inching his pelvis deeper into me to feel _everything_ he had to offer. I began to have nasty, dirty thoughts; thoughts that I would normally ignore, but not tonight. I spun around to face Gerald, grabbing him by his shirt collar for a deep, passionate kiss. He picked me up, wrapping my legs around his waist as he made his way back to our booth. He and I both shoved the empty bottles of liquor on the floor, not caring if they cracked against the hard cement floor below. I felt carnal, ravenous, hungry like I never felt for Gerald before and it drove me almost insane. He laid me against the cool table, never once breaking our heated kiss. His expert fingers roamed the outer fabric of my virgin lace panties, slowly moving them aside to rest his thumb against the damp tundra of my raven curls. I croaked back a moan and forced myself to remain calm and contained as I felt him begin to pleasure me with those movements I dearly missed. I closed my eyes, squirming at the way his trained hands could make my body succumb to his will on command. I could hear him whisper dirty thoughts into my ear as his movement grew faster, rougher. I opened my eyes, ready to meet his luscious brown ones as I glided over the euphoric wave of my climax, but was instead met with the hard, stoic gaze of husband; standing above me in the balcony with three of his colleagues.


	5. Chapter 5

**Gerald**

I drank another cup of coffee before I looked at my watch one last time. Today marked three days since I last seen Phoebe, and I have not heard from her. She and I spent the entire day together with Haruhi at the winter carnival my university was hosting and afterwards when Phoebe got a sitter on short notice after I asked her on a last minute date, she and I went to some dance club in downtown Tokyo. I was not expecting to stay more than a few hours, let alone make out and completely sexually molest Phoebe atop of a cocktail table. It just…happened. One minute we were congratulating Arnold and Helga on their engagement and the next I found myself being dry humped against my crotch. She kept worrying about Haruhi half the time we were there but I eventually got her to relax, drink a little, and get on the dance floor to one of her favorite songs- though she had to drag me halfway. Sighing, I slid my mug back against the wooden floorboards. This was all my fault.

"Yo, Gerald, you alright, man?"

I shot a quick glance in my buddy's direction. I gave him a small smile before nodding, falling back against the tatami mat and a few scattered pillows. "Just thinking."

"About?" Robert pressed, still clicking and pattering his fingers away at his game controller. I met Robert my second week in Japan. He went to some community college right outside the skirts of Kyoto where his father was temporarily stationed. He and I met under unusual circumstances to say the least. Arnold and I were lost, driving aimlessly until we found a familiar road or expressway when we damn near ran into Robert on his bicycle. Robert was an even six feet, dark complexioned, muscular African-American male- much like myself. When Arnold turned to look at the map I had in my lap, he swerved onto the shoulder of the road and almost knocked over Robert. Profanities where thrown here and there and it took Arnold and Robert's girlfriend, Sheila, who was nearby to breakup an almost fight between he and I. It was Sheila who invited us all back to the apartment she and Robert shared a few miles back for some tea and cookies where we went from complete enemies to good friends. "Don't tell me it's about Phoebe."

"I haven't heard from her in three days, man. I hope she is ok."

"Why wouldn't she be?" Robert paused briefly to bang against the 'x' and 'y' buttons of his controller to shoot an alien invader before bolting from his seat to do a victory dance. Robert was very much into videogames and the Japanese culture itself. He was attending community college with hopes and ambitions of becoming a game designer for Sony. I applauded and admired his goals and wished him the best. It was nice to see another African-American male with dreams to be anything other than the stereotypical basketball player or lyrical rapper. With him being from Kansas and leaving the United States due to his father's deployment, I could empathize on his hardship and struggles; being in Japan, especially, since we were some of the few black faces around. People at home nor abroad expected much from us. I made it a duty to support Robert and he would do for me in my political career. I was no expert in Japanese politics or foreign policy, but I took a huge interest and though about setting up camp here if need be. With Phoebe and Haruhi already stationed here-maybe permanently- I had to look at various options for my future; but one thing was for sure though. Phoebe was most certainly going to be in it.

"She left so abruptly without an explanation that I figured something was up."

Robert raised a single brow, chugging down a can of soda. "Did you two…you know…do it?"

"Really, Robert?"

"Just a simple question." He chuckled. "From what you told me, I was surprised you didn't break out a condom then and there, flip her over, hike up her dress and-"

"Enough, Robert. Thank you." I raised my hands, waving erratically. Though Robert was becoming more of a better friend as time progressed, one thing I could do without was his crass attitude. He was very open about talking about anything pertaining to sex; regardless of we were in public or in the privacy of our apartments. Robert had no problem talking about how well Sheila blew him last night or give Arnold and I advice on how to properly please a woman- not that I needed any. There were a couple of times Arnold and I gave subtle hints for him to keep that kind of talk in private where wandering ears could not hear, but Robert did not care. He simply continued on with his lecture on the proper techniques of backwards cowgirl while sipping his tea.

"Just sayin', man."

"What are we discussing, fellas?" Arnold came in with the three bento boxes we ordered from this late night sushi place. I was never a fan of raw fish, let alone seafood, until I came to Japan. My addiction was officially wasabi. "Did I miss anything interesting?"

I shook my head, stabbing a California roll with my chopstick. "Just Robert being Robert."

"Not that you all complain."

"We do!" Arnold and I said in unison, chuckling.

"Keep your sex life to yourself please."

"Arnold, you need a sex life."

"I have one, thank you." He quipped, nursing down a forkful of rice with some green tea. "I just don't want anyone else to know about it."

"I don't see why you two are so prude about sex. It's natural and beautiful."

"No argument there." I chimed. "However, I don't need to know what you and Sheila do in and out of the sheets."

Robert scoffed, taking another bite of his crab roll before wolfing down a few spoonful of rice. "Well, I figured it'll help seeing as how you are trying to get Phoebe back in your life. I thought you could use a few pointers."

I grew quiet, beginning to trace the outline of my box with my fork. I thought about Phoebe nonstop for the past few days. I kept replaying the scene in the club over and over again, repeatedly asking myself if I took things a little too far. I couldn't blame my actions on the alcohol because we had very little and I could not lie to her and say I regret any of them because I did not. I actually would do it all over again and maybe take things a step further if she was willing. I have not seen Phoebe Heyerdahl in almost four years since she moved away from Hillwood to Japan because of her father's promotion. I was young and stupid back then, lusting after women, giving into my sexual desires when I had a woman- the right woman- in front of me the whole time. Phoebe was far from perfect but she was the woman I knew in my heart and soul I was supposed to give my last name to. Although I did not expect to come to Japan and find her married with a kid, it did not change how I felt for Phoebe; if anything, it intensified it. The young woman that left Hillwood almost four years ago was now a full-fledged woman that displays more confidence, opinion, attitude, and sass. She is more outspoken and fearless of people's judgments. Physically, she was no longer the thin, frail young lady I subconsciously handled with care in fear of damaging her. No, Phoebe graced curves and valleys; hills and mountains that made me salivate more than Pavlov's dogs. Her breasts grew much suppler as her hips grew wider from child birth; not to mention that she finally had an ass that I could grab. At the dance club, I had a hard time keeping my hands to myself. I had naughty, risqué thoughts about Phoebe and I but I kept them and my urges to myself out of respect. But when she began twirling her hips against my pulsating member confined within my tights slacks, I threw all caution to the wind and could not help myself. Phoebe was too irresistible for words and it made me yearn for her more. It was something about watching her catalyze from a timid, bashful girl into a confident, sexy woman that made me gain not only a new found respect for Phoebe but awaken a hidden lust that I never knew existed.

"Gerald!" I shot up to see Arnold and Gerald throwing rice at me. I shrugged it off with a quick sip of my coffee. "You still there, man?"

"Yeah, I just got sidetracked a bit."

"Still thinking about Phoebe, huh?" Arnold asked; concern laced within his voice. "Still no call?"

I shook my head, checking my phone in my jacket pocket. No missed calls or unread text messages. "Nothing. It's like what happened that night didn't happen at all."

"You know why she ran out the way she did?"

I shrugged, taking another bite from my bento box. "No. She had this fear in her eyes and started to tear up. Before I could even ask what was wrong, she pushed me away and ran out the front door."

"Did you follow her?"

"Of course I did, Robert." I shot back with more anger than I intended. "What type of man wouldn't go after the woman he loves after seeing her breakdown like that."

The room fell silent for a few moments, Arnold, Robert, and I beginning to eat and stare effortlessly at out half-eaten meals. I suddenly lost my appetite. The mere thought of Phoebe was enough to make my stomach churn. I felt so stupid for rushing into things the way I did. I should have kept it non-adulterated and kept my hands to myself. Maybe I would have gotten to see her again; let alone a phone call. I stood to get up and take the rest of my dinner to my room before there was a light tapping against the door. I echoed out that I would answer before I opened and revealed a frazzled Haruhi.

"Haruhi." I said, surprised. "What on earth are you doing out here so late!?"

"My mommy told me to come here because it would be safer."

That piqued my interest as I escorted the little girl in. I introduced her to Arnold and Robert before picking her up and taking her to the sofa. "What do you mean?"

"Okaasan and papa where having an argument and mommy told me to come to this address because it would stop daddy from hitting me again."

"Again!?" My voice rose a couple of octaves; my blood beginning to boil as she handed me a paper napkin with my address scribbled in purple crayon in Phoebe's handwriting. I clenched it before slamming a fist against the floorboards. "Dammit!"

"How did you get here?" asked Arnold, wrapping a blanket against the shivering three year old. "You didn't take the trains did you?"

She shook her head. "One of papa's driver's took me before he could find out okaasan let me out the backdoor."

"He will pay!"

"Calm down, Gerald." Arnold soothed, coming towards Haruhi and I. He forcefully grabbed the napkin away from me before smiling at Haruhi. "What type of argument did your mommy and daddy get into?"

"Okaasan was being hit by papa." She grew quiet, beginning to cry. " I went over to papa to tell him to stop hurting okaasan but he pushed me and hurt my arm."

"The bastard!" I roared. I zipped up my jacket and raced over towards the door to put on my sneakers. "Watch her until I get back."

"Gerald!" Robert yelled. " Think rationally for a moment. Let the police handle this."

"Excuse my language but fuck the police!" I snapped back, opening the front door. "Domestic violence in Japan is not handled as harshly here as in America; especially since one of Japan's elite is the one blackening his wife's eye!"

"Robert is right, Gerald." Arnold came over, placing a calm hand on my shoulder. I shrugged it off, angry. "I understand politics is different here than in America but let the authorities handle it. You don't want to be thrown in jail…AGAIN…and risk your scholarship!"

"So I am supposed to sit by and let Phoebe get beat on by some other man?"

"No, but you going over there to cause more trouble will do more harm than good!"

I growled, knowing Arnold and Rob where right. Me going over there was going to stir the pot more so than simmer it. Not only was Kato financially connected, he was also very well politically tied. If anything, he could spin the story and tell authorities I caused the disruption and began hitting Phoebe and they would not think much of it. I let out a small huff of frustration before punching in the wall next to me. I was conflicted in emotions. I couldn't risk my life, let alone my future, but then again the woman I love was currently getting slapped around by her prick of a husband. I made my decision and decided to head over to Phoebe's home anyway. Damn my scholarship and damn my potential jail time. I may not know what would be in store for me when I get there, but I sure as hell was ready to find out.

I ignored Arnold and Robert's hollers as I grabbed my keys from the countertop and raced down the stairs. I knew I was making a rather brash and unwise decision but me contemplating on what to do was not going to solve anything; let alone save Phoebe. Before I could even get inside my car, I watched a white Mercedes pull up in front of my apartment complex and push out what seemed to be a human body. I called after the man driving the vehicle but he sped away halfway down the block before I could get a good glimpse at him. I could have ran after the car but the person on the ground seemed to need intense medical attention. I kneeled down towards the body and unwrapped the blood stained bed sheets that covered the face. I let in a sharp breath before I quickly cradled the limp body in my arms, racing towards the car to head to a nearby hospital. It was Phoebe.

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait my kittens! I been super busy lately. My finance and I are doing intense wedding planning and I am studying for midterms. Can't believe it's almost here! Wow! Anyhoo, I hope you all like this chapter. I love my readers and reviewers and I look only to better myself as a writer. I added in BlackRob88 into this chapter as promised and HannaCabrodi and Neptune will be making another cameo appearance soon so be on the lookout. Have a great rest of the week and stay tuned! You never know; I may update this weekend. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Phoebe**

"_Please pass the sashimi."_

_I looked at my husband, quietly passing him the bowl of raw fish. He thanked me before returning back to his meal. I looked at Haruhi, happily munching on a pork cutlet before dipping it into her bowl or rice and raw egg. I commanded she slow down and drink her water before she chocked from eating like a ravaged hound. There was, again, silence. Kato continued to read his evening paper as Haruhi happily ate while humming the tune to her favorite afternoon show. I began playing with my food, suddenly losing my appetite. _

_I stood to excuse myself. "I'll go run your bath." I said towards Kato. _

"_I can do it myself, Phoebe. I don't need any trollop who was groped by some African banshee to do anything for me."_

_My breath was caught in my throat. I stared at Kato in disbelief. "W-what did you say?"_

_He deviated his gaze from the uneventful newspaper. He took a small sip from his cup before he looked at me, eyes full of malicious intent as that sly smirk on his face showed he had something up his sleeve. "You heard me wife dearest. I don't want any part of a woman that is tainted by the hands of a filthy black man. Your parents told me about this behavior but I thought you outgrew it once you moved here. I see now you are still chasing the tails of those animalistic Nig-"_

"_Don't you DARE say that about him!" I shrieked, slamming my dishes against the table in a wave of anger. I began shaking, heart beating at record pace as I felt my mouth grow dry. "You know nothing about Gerald."_

"_So this monkey has a name, huh?" He took another sip from his drink, grinning as he turned back to his paper. "I will have to research him since he obviously has quite the hold over my wife."_

"_Kato…"_

"_Papa, don't call papa Gerald mean and nasty names. He is good to okasaan." _

"_Haruhi!" I scolded, completely baffled and overtaken with fear. I watched as Kato's amused grin turned into one of pure hatred. He told Haruhi to take the rest of her dinner to her room to let he and I talk in private. She was reluctant to leave me but I told her it was alright and to shut the door so she wouldn't hear any adult language. Before Haruhi could even turn the corner, I felt the hard stinging slap of my husband's hand against my face. It caught me so off-guard that I stumbled backwards._

"_You have my daughter calling that animal 'daddy'?" he slapped me again, this time with much more force. I feel back against the tatami mats, holding my face in pain. "What else has he done for my daughter? What about my wife? Has he pleased her as well?"_

"_K-Kato…" I watched in fear as he rose from his seat to loom over me, beginning to kick me in my sides. I curled into a small ball to fight off the brunt of the attack but felt myself begin to cry. Kato has hit me before, many times intoxicated, but it was never like this. He has pulled my hair, slapped me, and even pushed me but never has he ever really tried to physically harm me. "Kato! Stop! Please!"_

"_Oh, so you want me to show mercy on the adulterous wife?" He spoke with venom, grabbing my ponytail as he dragged me from the kitchen to the living room. He tossed me like a rag doll against the sofa bed as he straddled me, beginning to punch me in the face and stomach. "What has he done for my wife, hm?"_

"_Kato! Stop!"_

"_He has already won the heart of my daughter, so does he have my wife as well?" He spoke the last two words with much more vigor, removing himself from atop of me to pull my hair again and drag me to the middle of the floor. I began to cough up blood as I felt my face become slightly swollen from the mass attack. I tried to crawl away but Kato kicked my forearm, making me lose my balance and fall to the floor in a loud thud. I could feel him begin to slink down my floral patterned dress, ripping off my panties as he briskly unbuckled his belt loop. I began trying to kick and punch him but he was much too strong. He would slap and punch me every time I tried to fight back. _

"_STOP!" I screamed. I watched in horror as he pooled my dress into nothing more than a jumble of fabric along my waist as he entered me roughly, beginning to bang my body to match the fury of his anger. I shrieked in agony as I tried to push him from atop of me. I watched as Haruhi emerged from her bedroom to stand in the entranceway of the living room, screaming for Kato to stop hurting me. I tried to tell Haruhi it was alright; that daddy and I were just playing but Haruhi lunged towards her father and began hitting him with her doll. Kato stopped raping me to backhand Haruhi into the sofa. I immediately bit him as my motherly instincts went into hyper drive; kicking Kato with more force than I thought I could muster as I went to go aid Haruhi. I quickly escorted her back to the kitchen, scribbling on a piece of a paper an address for her to go to. I was too afraid that Kato might hurt her again, seeing as how he showed no sympathy for trying to damn near kill me. Haruhi began weeping but I hushed her with a small kiss, yelling at her to run before her papa could find her. I could not even close and lock the back door before Kato stormed into the kitchen; grabbing my hair again as he threw me against the edge of one of the countertops. I felt a sharp pain in my ribs as I knelt down in pain. I felt him kick me again, one time to the head and twice to the back. I fell towards the floor. Everything went black. _

"Pheobes?" I fluttered my eyes open, coughing as I tried adjusting the bright light above me. I saw Helga, smiling as small tears streamed down her face. She hugged me but I winced in pain. She apologized repeatedly before placing a small kiss on my cheek. "Crimeny, I thought I lost my best-friend."

"Where am I?"

"The hospital." She gripped my hand, smiling. "Hair boy…I mean Gerald brought you here late last night."

I became alarmed, suddenly realizing what happened last night. "Where is my baby!?" I sat up, fully erect to search for her. "Is she alright?!"

"She's fine." Helga cooed, turning to show little Haruhi fast asleep in one of the chairs. She was blanketed by Gerald's jacket and had a stuffed rabbit serving as a pillow. In her hand showed a cute card that read 'Get Well Soon Mommy'.

I smiled, coming to tears. "Thank you."

She nodded. "You have some people who would like to see you."

"Who?"

Before she could answer, Hanna and Neptune both appeared holding a bouquet of balloons and a large stuffed pink elephant. I smiled and giggled, feeling small pain. I hugged both of them lightly. "Hanna-chan, Neptune-san, what a surprise."

"By the grace of God you are alive, Phoebe. I shall spite your husband into the darkness of hell for what he has done to you!"

Neptune popped her wad of cherry-flavored gum. "What she said."

I smiled. "Thank you, Hanna. But I am sure it was just an accident."

Helga scoffed, getting upset. "How can you defend that monster for what did to you!? He hurt little Haruhi!"

"Helga…"

"I swear if Arnold didn't hide my keys and take my wallet, I would escort ol Betsey and the Five Avengers to his workplace and give him a good pounding. He likes to hit on defenseless girls, huh. Let him try someone his own size. That will teach him ol' pencil dick!"

Neptune giggled, flipping back a wave of her pink hair. "I agree with Helga. Spiting him to hell won't make Phoebe feel any better now."

Hanna huffed, crossing her arms. "Violence is not the answer you guys. We have to pray for him! Maybe he was going through a tough time. You know evil spirits sometimes can take over a person."

"Save the mumbo jumbo, Princess." Helga spat. "I have known Phoebe longer than you two combined and I know she wants me to put a good beating on the scumbag!"

I smiled at my three friends, overjoyed. "I appreciate all gestures, thank you."

"See!" Hanna beamed. "Phoebe liked it."

I watched both Neptune and Helga roll their eyes as Gerald and Arnold both returned with cups of coffee and bagels for everyone. I didn't even get a chance to formulate a single coherent thought before Gerald kissed me. To my surprised I kissed back, not wanting to let go. We broke the kiss, gazing longingly at each other, my cheeks reddening as I turned away. I heard Helga clear her throat to make the moment less awkward and liven up the suddenly quiet room. Arnold suggested he take the girls out for a quick walk to give us a chance to talk privately. I watched Gerald turn around and thank Arnold, earning much disagreement from Hanna. I reassured them I would only be a few moments and watched them disappear behind the ugly dark blue curtain of my single. I moved a few stray strands of hair from my face, blushing deeper as Gerald pulled up a stool to sit beside me. I caught a glimpse of my reflection in my heart rate monitor and saw that I looked absolutely horrendous. I hid underneath my bed sheet.

I heard Gerald chuckle. "Phoebe, what are you doing?"

"I look hideous! I have chapped lips, my hair is a mess, and my face is half purple! Plus I bet I smell like sewage! You can't see me like this!"

He chuckled again, this time pulling down my makeshift tent. He grabbed my hand. "You look beautiful, purple bruises and all."

"I don't smell beautiful."

"No argument there." I caught my breath, hitting him in the shoulder; embarrassed. He smiled. "But I love you enough to not care."

I smiled. "How did I get here?"

He grew quiet for a minute, gripping his coffee tighter. His breathing picked up pace. "That bastard rolled you out of his car like you were a pile of garbage. I brought you here last night. Luckily, there were no broken bones or fractures."

"Haruhi made it to your place safely?" he nodded, gazing lovingly at the three year old. "She has her room picked out and everything. We are going to the paint store today to pick out the colors for her room."

"E-excuse me?"

He sipped his coffee, raising a single brow. "You didn't think I was going to let you go back there did you?"

"But Gerald…"

"It's settled Phoebe. We shall iron out the details later but as of now, you and Haruhi are staying with me until you have other arrangements in place."

"I would hate to impose." I spoke softly, feeling like a freeloader. "At least let me give you some money. I have a couple thousand yen in my private bank account."

He shook his head, clenching my hand. "No. I could not take anything from you."

"Gerald…"

"That's final, Phoebe." He spoke firmly. "End of discussion. Once you get cleared to leave, you will come live with me."

I didn't argue with him. I just nodded and embraced him in another kiss. We pulled away quickly once we saw my doctor come in. He explained to me the severity of my injuries and said it was nothing more than a few bruises and a sprained ankle- thankfully. I was cleared to leave today or tomorrow depending on how I was feeling and the choice was entirely my decison. I choose to leave that afternoon since I was feeling up to it. I was given a few painkillers and a refill of my prescription of Benedryl before I was discharged. The rest of the celebration occurred over Gerald's house once we returned. His shared apartment/dorm was decorated with streamers and balloons as a gathering of our friends and his friends warmly greeted me. Rhonda and Nadine were the first to hug me and meet Haruhi. Harold, Stinky, and Sid all embraced me next as they gave me 'Get Well' gifts and cards. Eugene performed his personal rendition of his favorite song from 'Rats' before falling off the side table and into a pile of debris; shouting out 'I'm okay'. Big Patty baked me a cake as Lila wrote me a poem and delivered me flowers- much to Helga's dislike.

I met Gerald's new friend, Robert, and his twin brother, Rob. Robert was dark-skinned and muscular, a bit crass and hypersexual while his twin brother, Rob, was light-skinned, a bit lanky, laid-back, and more of a prude. The entire party when Stinky and Harold weren't telling jokes or if Eugene wasn't singing another song, Robert was conversing about sex- sex positions, sex toys, sex, sex, sex. Rob, however, was more into video-games than his brother so took the latter and ignored the explicit conversation for some competitive racing between Arnold, Gerald, and Helga. Hanna and Neptune baked cookies- well at least Hanna did, Neptune simply ate them- and Helga ordered the 'Fiesta Grande' platter of tacos from this Mexican place around their campus. I enjoyed my party, especially when all my friends got to meet Haruhi for the first time. Many of them did not know I had a daughter and showered her with attention for majority of the afternoon. Her little ego got a huge boost to put it lightly.

Around seven, the party was beginning to wind down and Gerald had kicked everybody, including Arnold, out of the apartment to spend some alone time with Haruhi and I. Helga protested but Arnold insisted he did not mind and went to go spend the night at Helga's. Hanna and Neptune yelled out that they would see me tomorrow for breakfast, their treat, before having the door slammed in their faces. I giggled and told Gerald he was rather rude but he did not care. He embraced me in a loving kiss before picking me up bridal style and taking me to his bedroom. Haruhi was sprawled across the sheets, wrapped in her pink elephant. I watched closely as Gerald swooped Haruhi into his arms to carry her to her room. It was not quite finished yet but Gerald took the liberty of buying Haruhi a bed and a few stuffed animals to make the room more inviting. He tucked her in before planting a small kiss on her forehead, whispering goodnight in her ear. I felt warm just watching, coming to tears as I watched Haruhi smile in her sleep. For the first time in a long time, Haruhi had a man in her life that was not going to abandon her. When she was born, Kato was around almost every waking hour of the day. As his work schedule grew more hectic and his life with his mistress become a priority, he started spending less and less time with his daughter; often blowing off play dates, father-daughter afternoons, school meetings, her violin recitals, everything. Seeing Gerald become the father Haruhi so desperately deserved brought a feeling of joy I could not begin to fathom.

He wiped away a few stray tears, cracking Haruhi's bedroom door slightly. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing." I dismissed. "I'm just happy. You are so great with her."

He kissed me, grabbing my hand soft to lead me to the bathroom where a fresh bath awaited. "She is the only girl I love aside from you."

"Gerald." I spoke gently, watching slowly as he began to undress me, removing my glasses first to set them on the edge of the sink. "Kato will come back for me. I know this. As much as I want to stay here, I can't."

"Why not?" he kissed my cheek, pulling down the straps of my dress to expose my breasts. I covered them, blushing. He kissed me again. "You are still the same Phoebe; still embarrassed to have me see you naked though I have seen every crevice of your body numerous of times."

My face grew hot. I turned away. "I just…I….I'm married."

"I know." There was defeat laced within his voice, then silence as he undid my high-bun and allowed my hair to cascade down my back. I finally looked at him, eyes filled with tears. He kissed them away gently before leading me into the rather large basin. The water was very warm and soothed my sore limbs from the beating I endured only a few hours ago. I observed my body and saw the bruise from Kato's strikes, trying to shield them from Gerald's prying eyes. He grabbed a body sponge and lathered it with soap beginning to caress me. I bit my bottom lip, holding back a small moan as he ran against my nipples. Technically the bath in Japan was only to soak and the shower next to it was for cleansing, but I did not mind. There was a certain American simplicity that I missed.

"…Will you join me?" my voice was no higher than a murmur. I grabbed the body sponge, shifting to face Gerald. "…Please…?"

"Are you sure, Phoebe? I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable."

I nodded, blushing a deeper shade of crimson. I swallowed hard as I watched him stand to remove his burgundy sweater. "Y-yes…I don't want to be alone."

**A/N: Sorry for the delay. I got caught up with my in-laws…(Insert fake sarcastic smiley face here). I have the…um…uncut version per say of the rest of this scene in the 'M' section for those who have not read it already. I thought I would give you kittens something to snack on while you waited for this. Thank you again for the support and love. I appreciate all feedback. I hope you all like your cameo's thus far. I have one more person to insert and I am sure they will like it. I would like to recommend HannaCabrodi's 'Romance Languages' as a good read for the Helga and Arnold lovers out there and to also forewarn to be on the lookout for BlackRob88's story. It should be published soon I believe. Thank you again and I really hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I loved writing it. Until next time kittens. **


	7. Chapter 7

**Gerald**

I silently thanked the cashier as she handed me my grocery bags, giving a few to Arnold to carry. Tonight he and I were planning to cook a homemade dinner for the girls as the start of a new family tradition. I was not sure how to make traditional Japanese cuisine- my last attempt being an epic failure seeing as how I nearly burned down my apartment trying to use a wok- so I was sticking to a simple meal of ramen, microwavable dumplings, and Hotpockets. Every evening Phoebe would have dinner prepared for me when I got home from my late evening classes and Haruhi would rush up to greet me. I was really getting used to playing 'house' and wanted to make things permanent since things between Phoebe and I have been going great. I have not seen her smile so much or laugh as hard as she does now than when we were teens. Every day, she would get up and make a quick breakfast as I got Haruhi ready for school. Then we would trade off as I kissed her goodbye and wished my two favorite girls to have a good day in school as I scarfed down the rice and eggs Phoebe would make; sneaking in my own few pieces of bacon and toast when Phoebe left. Japan was too healthy for me.

I could not have been happier these past few weeks. Ever since that night with Phoebe, things between us have been anything close to perfect. The following morning, Phoebe and I were awoken by a puzzled Haruhi as she asked us "why was 'okasaan' screaming out papa Gerald's name last night?" Phoebe blushed and hid under the covers as I made up a quick lie about Phoebe yelling at me to kill a spider. Haruhi naively bought the lie and skipped off into the kitchen while screaming that she wanted cereal and juice. Despite Phoebe's embarrassment, that morning after breakfast Haruhi, Phoebe, and I spent the day together at the ice-rink and later went tobogganing down one of Japan's steepest winter slopes. That evening after a cold, icy, agonizing day filled with falling on my ass and tumbling down a steep hill as Haruhi and Phoebe heartily laughed at my expense, the three of us snuggled up against a fire, drank hot-chocolate with fluffy marshmallows, and watched a cute Japanese anime movie together- as a _real _family. Initially, I could tell Phoebe was skeptical in allowing her and Haruhi to development quite the attachment towards me, but brick by brick, I slowly broke down Phoebe's walls she had guarding her broken heart and allowed her to see and realize that the boy she dated almost four years ago was now officially a man that was not ever going to hurt her again.

"Ready to go cook?" asked Arnold, obviously being sarcastic. "These hotpockets look mighty hard to make."

I nudged him playfully as I grabbed the paper bag on the counter, putting on my hat as I braced myself for the bitter winds of Japan. It was late February, early March and although winter was dying down and turning itself into the beginnings of spring, the occasional flurry storm and below zero winds would come coursing through and cause a sudden chill. "Shut up. You are the one who suggested we cook."

"I felt bad just watching the girls do all the cooking. Helga was the one who came in an unplugged the game saying that this was not the 1950's and we needed to get our lazy asses up and do some housework."

I chuckled, pushing up against the store door to allow Arnold and I outside. "That's your fiancée." I chided, laughing at the memory. Rob, Robert, Arnold, and I were playing Alien Invaders 7 when Helga came barging in, chucking the television remote at us as she unplugged the television set and barked orders at us. Phoebe and Haruhi giggled in the doorway as they mixed a bowl of cake batter for the cupcakes that were for dessert. "You have to deal with that for the rest of your life."

Arnold laughed. "Don't remind me. But you do as well. That is Phoebe's best friend you know. I bet during the wedding reception Helga would bar you from touching Phoebe inappropriately in any kind of way."

I gave the idea a thought. Over the past few weeks, I have been wondering the right time to talk to Phoebe about us getting 'officially' back together. Kato has been trying to get in contact with her but since she blocked his calls, her parents relay the messages he leaves with them and they are not too happy about that; especially since they heard I was back in the picture. I did not want to bring up the idea of divorce immediately, but the conversation was becoming inevitable. My time here in Japan was slowly dwindling down into nothing more than a little over two months. I considered relocating here for Phoebe and Haruhi, but wanted to discuss the option of going back to Hillwood to start fresh and begin a new life- just the three of us. I have gotten paid internship offers from the American ambassador program in Tokyo, Japan, as well as scholarship opportunities to attend law school in Japan for a fraction of the cost it would normally be, and the pay the equivalent of a six-figure job back in America; but I would miss my family and friends way too much. Arnold, Helga, and the gang would all return to America and I would not be able to see my family as much as I would like to. Not only that, but the culture shock here in Japan in much different than in the states. As vibrant, unique, and often time weird as Japan can be, there was nothing that could compare to my home of Hilwood.

"I haven't even brought up the idea of divorce to Phoebe yet."

Arnold raised an eyebrow. "So…she has no plans on divorcing this prick?"

I shrugged, rebalancing the bags of groceries. "I tend to not dwell on that subject too much. But I do think it's time I ask her about it."

Arnold nodded. "Yeah, we leave in early May."

"Don't remind me, man." My voice trailed off.

I watched Arnold give a sympathetic look before forgetting the subject altogether. I hated talking about it but Arnold was right; I needed to find the right time and place to set Phoebe down and ask her where she plans to see us go from here. Not only have I fallen deeper in love with her all over again, I have come to love her daughter as my own. Even the thought of not having either of them in my life made me cringe as the familiar ping of jealousy reared its ugly green head. I could not allow myself to let Phoebe go a second time, not after everything that has happened to rebuild and strengthen what we had before she left. I began kicking a few stray piles of snow to clear my mind before a beautiful African-American woman came and approached Arnold and I. She was dressed warmly in a black leopard coat and matching earmuffs, whispering something against the wind as she signaled for Arnold and I to follow her into the neighboring limousine that was parked alongside the curb. We looked at each other before debating on what our next move should be. Arnold suggested we make a break for it but the sight of two big, burly guard looking men stepping out the front and passenger sides of the car made Arnold and I freeze still. I was confused as to what was happening but as the beautiful woman reappeared, sticking her head outside the car door to beckon us once more, I did not question it and slowly made my way into the vehicle.

Arnold got in first and then I stepped in. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the rather bright lighting but we managed as a stern, masculine voice dimmed the lights as he asked if we cared for some sake or vodka from his mini bar. It was Kato.

"Gentleman, drinks?"

"No thank you." Arnold replied politely.

I, on the latter, was quite rude. "They drugged so you can kill us?"

Kato laughed, signaling for the beautiful black girl to pour him a glass of vodka and cranberry. She slinked off her coat to reveal a very sensual sheer, metallic dress with Red and gold glitter pumps. She kissed him upon his lips before making his drink to order. "Now why would you think that, Gerald?"

"You know my name?

He nodded, taking a sip of his drink. "I know quite a bit about you…and your best pal Arnold, as well."

Arnold and I looked at each other from the corner of our eyes, staring back at Kato. He took another sip, shuffling between the thick layers of his black leather trench coat. "Why did you stop us?" Arnold asked.

"To have a friendly discussion with Gerald here about my wife, Phoebe."

"What about her?" I shot back. "Don't forget your daughter."

He scoffed, motioning for the African-American woman beside him to hop into his lap. She happily obliged, beginning to suck on his neck and unbuckle his pants. I became uncomfortable. "Haruhi was an unplanned mistake. I never wanted that little bitch anyway."

That caught me off-guard, causing me to instantly grow angry. "Don't you _dare_ call her out of her name."

"Attached are we?"

I grew quiet. "She deserves a father, not some dick that will only abandon her and abuse her mother."

Kato chuckled as the beautiful woman traveled lower. "Phoebe was a sweet little play thing when I first met her, but after a while she grew too…needy. She began telling me how much you hurt her and how much she was afraid to love another man; like I gave a damn about her sob story. I just wanted that sweet, innocent ass."

I clenched my fist, gritting my teeth as I refrained from punching the lowlife in the face. "Do not disrespect Phoebe."

"Please." He scoffed again, downing the last of his drink. "You are the last person to talk to me about disrespecting or hurting Phoebe. Aren't you the _real_ reason why she chose to move here in the first place?"

I grew mute. "Gerald and Phoebe broke up on mutual terms." Arnold interjected, saving my ass. "But why does their relationship hold significance to you?" Arnold paused, glaring at the women in between his legs…awkwardly. "You clearly have your interest elsewhere."

"A man needs options doesn't he?" he directed his question towards me. "If I recall correctly, Ariel was an option of yours during the time you and Phoebe were an item."

"You know nothing about me or my relationship with Ariel and/or Phoebe." I drew in a sharp breath. "Cut to the chase. What exactly do you want?"

"Simple, you to cut ties with Phoebe and bring that wench and her bastard daughter home so I can look like a family man."

I was taken aback by his blunt, cold demeanor; the young woman giving him fellatio in the middle of our car ride not really helping either. I cleared my throat. "Excuse me?"

He sighed, reaching to his left to grab a bottle of Don Juan. He took a sip directly out of the bottle. "Let Phoebe and Haruhi come home."

"Like hell that will happen." I scoffed, leaning back further into my seat. "You beat on a defenseless woman and expect me to hand her and her daughter back over to you like its Christmas? Man, you buggin'."

Kato chuckled. There was a small air of silence as we ventured closer towards my apartment. I found it a bit creepy and odd that he knew exactly where I lived and knew a bit about me that only those close to me would know. I began wondering if Phoebe may have brought our situation up in passing during a conversation but she was never the one to really gossip or throw dirt on someone's name-even if they did her wrong. I quickly dismissed all thoughts as a small, cynical smile peered across his lips. "Gerald, I am trying to have a civil conversation and talk man to man. Don't make this difficult."

"No, you are making the absurd request. Why should I let Phoebe go?"

"For one, I'm her husband and by law she and I are legally married. You are simply the…how do I word this…boyfriend."

I had to admit, that stung. It was ironic how the roles were reversed this time around. I was finally getting a taste of my own medicine and, boy, it is a tough one to swallow. "Phoebe talked about divorcing you." I blurted out without thinking. The look on his face went from amused to quite interested, he pushing the woman from in between his legs to his far right as he composed himself.

"She talked about…what?"

"Divorce." I said again, this time earning a glance from Arnold. "She does not want to be married anymore."

"Really?" He paused. "So…has she begun to talk to lawyers? Will she try and gain any of my personal assets?"

"No." I answered sternly, lying through my teeth. "She simply want to cut all ties with you and begin a new life in Hilwood…with me."

"And Haruhi?"

"She desires full-custody."

"Gerald!" Arnold yelled. "What?!"

Kato grew stoic, almost lifeless as he approached the apartment complex. The two burly guards got out of the limo and opened the door for us. I stared at Kato, he staring at me in an unwitting battle for dominance. He finally blinked, clearing his throat as he turned away and pulled the dark-skinned woman closer to his frame. "Enjoy your evening gentlemen."

"You do the same." I retorted, getting out of the car and walking towards the front steps. I waited for Arnold to be in full-view, the limousine pulling all the way down the block before I unlocked the main door and ventured up the steps to our shared apartment. I felt Arnold tug at my jacket.

"What the hell was that!?"

"Me thinking on my feet, I don't know!" I sighed, cursing. "What was I supposed to say?"

"Gerald, did you see how he looked at you?"

I paused, remembering. Unlike most fathers who would fear losing their wife and child, Kato looked calculating and malicious; like he was planning something. I could not really explain it but I certainly had an uneasy feeling about that man. I sighed again, marching up to our floor. "I'm not worried about it." I lied.

"Gerald, this is no time to bullshit!" Arnold said in panic, fear laced in his voice. He set his bags down and pulled me to the side away from the front door and any prying ears. Everyone in the building knew the walls were paper thin and even the sound of a rat pissing could be hear from the first floor. "He looked as if he was planning something."

"Arnold, you worry too much."

"And you are playing with fire here. You haven't even spoken to Phoebe, let alone gotten word as to what her plans are for her dysfunctional marriage. Then you bring up Haruhi and full-custody?! What the hell, Gerald?"

"It was impromptu thinking, dammit!" I yelled, getting frustrated. As much as I knew Arnold was right, it did not seem like the big deal. Kato was no organized criminal or anything; just a scorned husband that happens to be a narcissist. "I didn't know what else to say. I was too distracted by the blonde giving him a blowjob to really concentrate."

"You need to tell Phoebe about this."

"No!" I roared, quickly calming myself after I apologized to Arnold. I took in a small breath, clearing and organizing my thoughts. "I mean it is not that serious to let her know about it."

"At least let someone know." Arnold pleaded. "I have a bad feeling about this guy. He was too calm for my taste and certainly did not react the way a normal husband and father would act once they find out they stand the chance of losing both their wife and kid."

"I know…"

"I'll alert the authorities just to start a paper trail."

"Arnold" I sighed, getting irritated. I know Arnold meant well but it could be sometimes frustrating to see him take things over the top. As much as I felt Kato's behavior was a tad bit peculiar, there was nothing really out of the ordinary. He did not seem like a sociopath or a serial killer, just an apathetic bastard that didn't care about his wife or kid. He is entitled to that right, even if it is not a favored one. "I appreciate the concern but you are blowing this out of proportion."

"Gerald-"

I interrupted. "It's settled Arnold. Nothing is going to happen. If he was planning something ruthless he would have done it when he had me in the car. The worse he could do postpone and contest the divorce…if Phoebe decides to go through with one."

"Are you sure?" Arnold sighed, giving up his fight as he picked up his bags and headed back towards our apartment. "Should we let Phoebe know?"

I nodded, reaching in my back pocket for my keys. "Positive and leave Phoebe out of this and let me handle the situation. Now let's make these noodles, I'm starving." I unlocked the door and forced myself into the house. I just hoped I was right about this guy.

**A/N: I did not forget about you Miss MorganTaylor. You cameo was actually going to be the mistress but I decided against it. I have another part that I feel will fit perfectly. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I wanted to give you all a little something to nibble on as I composed the next one. We are halfway through with this story so I hope you guys like it. I am planning a H&A story based off my Purple Elephants franchise. In the meantime, please provide honest feedback and constructive criticism. I look to always better myself as a writer. Also, thank you to my newest reviewer, freaktrains. I love and appreciate you feedback. It is very much appreciated and I am humbly grateful. HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND! -SensuallyPassionate **


	8. Chapter 8

I smoothed the wrinkles of my dress, tying my hair into a small bun before putting on my boots. I could not stop smiling. Today was White Day and although Gerald was not accustomed to Japanese holidays, he remembered today. I was awoken to the smell of blueberry pancakes and bacon, a nicely scented white rose and a handmade box of chocolates. Inside the white tin laid four delicate, yet poorly shaped heart chocolates. I could tell Gerald put a lot of effort into making them for me and the thought of him burning himself in the kitchen was enough to get me to tear up. I quietly slid into the kitchen to see a half-naked Gerald flipping almost burnt pancakes in a pink apron. I saw there was already a stack of blackened treats on the table next to 'crisp' bacon. I giggled. He gave me a look of embarrassment as he tried to scrape the burnt pieces from the pancakes before I could see them but I told him I loved the gesture anyway; though I ended up throwing the food out because of its horrid taste and making a fresh batch anyway. Gerald seemed to not mind one bit either. Tonight, I was planning on spending the evening alone with Gerald, to have some quality alone time. Lately our relationship was blossoming into something spectacular and the mere thought of thinking he would only be here for a few more weeks made my heart shatter. I began to do some serious and heavy thinking about the terms of our relationship. Though I have been avoiding Kato's calls and conversations with my family about our…'separation', one thing was clear; I loved Gerald and my feelings for Kato could never compare. I was just, ultimately, confused. Even with everything that Kato put me through, he was still the father of my child and there was a piece of me with him. He was the main person who stood beside me when Gerald broke my heart. Not only was he there to reconstruct it, but he was my pillar of support and my beacon of hope. But Gerald…Gerald held my heart in ways unfathomable. The past four years have done tremendous good on him; he crystalizing from a selfish boy into a humbled man. Gerald mellowed out, got the 'lust' out of his system, and was ready to settle down and begin a family. I noticed how he would occasionally hint towards marriage but I told him another time. I was still married and I needed to remind myself of that fact.

I took a glance at my ring finger, gazing at my wedding ring longingly. Never have I seen a more beautiful ring. There was many times where I conflicted with myself in taking it off. I have not seen my husband officially in almost two months and I was quite sure he did not miss me as much as I missed him. I knew he screwed around, but part of me wanted to believe that I at least meant something. After all, I am the mother of his child. I began to twist the golden band before there was a knock at my door, startling me. It was my mother.

I let out a small sigh of relief. "Mother, you scared me."

"I was coming to see what to hold up was about. We have an appointment for our pedicures."

I nodded, remembering. My grandparents were watching Haruhi for the weekend while I spent some time to myself to get everything situated and cleared. I was so confused. I grabbed my purse and my sweater. "Sorry, I was just thinking."

There was a small moment of silence before she spoke. "You are going to divorce Kato?"

I paused. "I…don't know…I'm so confused."

My mother set her car keys down atop of the dresser, leading me towards the bed. She took a seat and patted a spot alongside the comforter for me to sit next to her. "Baby, why would you do that?"

"Kato…."

"Is a good man." She interrupted. I grew quiet; beginning to twiddle my thumbs. "He just makes some

mistakes sometimes."

"Mother…he has mistresses." I paused to choke back emotion. I hated thinking about the fact that every time I would enter a relationship, I would be the one to get my heart broken. Gerald had affairs a few times during the time we were together and Kato began to wander once I became pregnant with Haruhi. Thoughts of if I were good enough or if I was doing something wrong would cross my mind as I tried every act thinkable to keep my men at home. I would cook, clean, do laundry, cater to their every whim and desire to the best of my ability but to no avail. With Gerald, I was not assertive enough and with Kato, we settled down much too early. "I am not the only apple of his eye."

"That's all men." My mother spoke gently, gazing at Gerald's poor choice in carpeting. "Men are just naturally non-committal creatures. Your father is no exception either."

I gasped, stunned. "Papa?"

My mother nodded. "Your father has had dozens of affairs, Phoebe. Even when you were young, I would catch him coming home in the early hours of the morning smelling of sake and sex. I thought that if I began throwing myself at your father more and more he would be tempted to come home instead of staying out late but it was useless. One affair led to another, then another, to the point where I wasn't sure to the average amount of women he would sleep with."

I sat frozen, shocked to the core. My father? An adulterer? I always found it suspicious and a bit odd when my mother would cover for my father being out until five in the morning when he got off at nine. The nights my mother would drink wine and listen to old, sad love songs as she wiped stray tears away with her handkerchief, or the nights she would curl herself into a ball and weep until she found herself unable to do much else. I was too young to understand it, let alone comprehend, and decided it was best if I stayed in a child's place and not question. The days my father took off work or came home early, my mother would beam with tremendous amounts of joy and happiness that almost brought her to tears that I never imagined them to have marital problems aside from the occasional feud of who does the dishes after dinner; let alone concerning adultery.

I grabbed my mother's hand, giving it a tight yet gentle squeeze. "I am so sorry mother."

She sniffled, forcing a half-smile. "No need to, darling. It's the past and all men do it so it's best to just accept the facts and move on."

I shook my head. "Not my Gerald; he is different."

She rolled her eyes, bolting from the bed in a fit of sudden frustration. "Phoebe, as much as I like Gerald- and really I do- he cannot give you half as much as Kato can."

"It's not about the money, mother!"

"Phoebe you are not a little girl anymore! Stop living in a fantasy life where a relationship is solely based on love and two people who actually care for one another. Now days it is nothing more than a transaction with the benefits of loving the one you are with. You have a daughter Phoebe."

"How can you even say that?" I gasped, stunned at my mother's candidness. I never seen her so blunt and open. "You love papa."

"I do, but if I could change things I would. Your father is a good person and has a wonderful soul; but his heart does not solely belong to me and I have to accept that fact if I plan on keeping this comfortable lifestyle. Gerald cannot provide for you and Haruhi the way Kato can."

"Gerald makes a decent living. Plus he is still in school and planning on continuing his education in law school in the fall. He has a promising future; one I believe in."

My mother rolled her eyes again, smacking her teeth before throwing her hands in the air. "When are you going to wake up, Phoebe? A Black man in law and politics has the same chance in being successful as an Asian running for government in Mexico."

"Why does this always come down to race with you?" My voice rose slightly. I was losing my temper. "Gerald and I broke up mainly because you and papa were too closed-minded to accept the fact that your daughter fell in love with an African-American."

"Phoebe-"

"If you actually took the time to get to know Gerald and understand that he is a good man and will give his left kidney if it meant making me happy, you would know that Kato is nothing but bad news for me and his family. He hit me!" I roared.

My mother stood silent for a moment, covering her mouth in shock as she fought back tears. I began to do the same, turning away in shame as I tried to hide my sudden flow of tears. I couldn't help myself. I never told anyone about Kato hitting me aside from Helga, Gerald, and Arnold. Helga had a hard time keeping it a secret as both Arnold and Gerald had to be physically detained by a few of their friends to keep them from storming to Kato's workplace uninvited looking for trouble. I did not want either of them to lose their scholarships and go back to the states. But most importantly, I did not want my family finding out. The last thing I wanted was for my father to take down the rifle he had proudly mantled in his study's wall to shoot the poor man or for my mother to make a few phone calls and handle the situation in the most…illegal way possible. I made my decision mainly out of fear, but also embarrassment. I was always betrothed with the moniker of being meek and mild-mannered. I was never the one to raise my voice, speak my opinion, or go against authority. It has always just been who

I am. I just could not give people the satisfaction of knowing that I turned out to be a complete and utter pushover.

"Phoebe…" my mother spoke. "He…hit you?"

There was another veil of silence. "Yes." I whispered, crying. "He even shoved our daughter."

"Why didn't you tell your father or let me know!?"

"I was ashamed, embarrassed, hurt, in a state of shock. I was just thinking of saving my own life and going to one of the only places close by I knew Haruhi and I would be safe."

She breathed in a heavy breath, mumbling. "Gerald's."

I nodded. "Yes, mother. Gerald has been my pillar of support for much more than you know. I love this man with every fiber of my being and though I am still confused as to what the status of our relationship will become, I just know for a fact that I won't allow you, papa, or anyone else for that matter tear us apart again."

"Phoebe, Kato…Kato…he was just may have been drunk is all."

I looked at my mother, completely stunned. I could not believe she was making excuses for his behavior. "Mother…"

"No man is perfect; hell, your father came home one too many times intoxicated with a little bit of a temper. No man is every going to treat you like a princess, Phoebe."

"Mother…"

She interrupted again. "Kato loves you and Haruhi. Maybe he has a hard time keeping it in his pants and maybe he needs anger management, but that is no grounds for divorce!"

"So what is mother!?" I yelled, completely angry and baffled. "When I am dead? Or how about when Haruhi is lying in a ditch because her prick of a father decided to lay hands on her when I am not around to take his anger out against me."

"Phoebe…I just don't think you are giving this enough thought. You are too emotionally driven. You need to think more critical."

I was getting too roused; hands shaking as my knees were beginning to give out from the sudden anxiety and stress. The mother, the one raised down South in Kentucky taught to shoot first and ask questions later- was actually going to defend and stand by my husband. He shoved her granddaughter and physically assaulted her own daughter. How could she even fathom defending such a man was beyond me. My mouth turned dry as my face grew pale. "Mother, maybe we should postpone our spa date. Suddenly, I am not feeling so well."

My mother grew quiet, understanding. She deviated her faze away from mine at any expense; trying her best to come up with the words to say but inevitably failing. She nodded. "Phoebe, know that I love you…"

"But you defend a man that would dare lay hands on me but shun the one who would die for me because he is Black?"

She turned away, sobbing. "It's not that simple, Phoebe."

"Then stop making it complicated mother. Gerald is a good man who will never lay a finger on me and who would give up his pride if it meant seeing Haruhi and I safe. If you cannot honestly stand there and support the man that has supported me through it all- even when we had our obstacles- I don't know what to say to you other than I am sorry for what papa done to you. You aren't even the same person I know and love."

Her sobbing grew heavier, she collapsing against the softness of my bed once more. She tried to say something through her muffled tears but I did not quite make it out. Instead of consoling my mother as my mind told me to do, I followed my heart and headed out the door to go anywhere away from here. My mind was too mixed up and confused over everything that had just happen and I did not understand how to sort through it all. Not only was my mother defending my husband against him beating me half-to-death and hurting his own daughter, but she stands by him and supports our marriage even though it breaks the vows of holistic monogamy. I couldn't stomach it, the mere thought bringing me to vomit in my driveway as I raced towards my car. I could not bear the thought of knowing my mother supports a man that would dare put harm to not only her daughter, but her toddler grandchild as well.

I drove five times over the speed limit as I raced down the expressway, headed back home. I stayed out for over six hours to clear my head and gather my thoughts about the talk I had with my mother. I tried to distract myself by running errands; heading to the dry-cleaners to pick up a few of Gerald's suits and my silk skirts, the grocery store to gather a few random items we needed to be restocked in the fridge, the doctor's office for my usual prescription strength Benedryl that I was supposed to get last week during my monthly routine checkup, and grabbed lunch to spend some quality time to myself as I sorted this entire mess out. I was completely torn, unable to make a good decision because there were pros and cons in the situation concerning both Gerald and my husband, Kato. Although Kato was an adulterer and had sporadic violent episodes, he loved Haruhi and me with every fiber within his body. He may have received the family he wanted relatively earlier than expected, but he grew to adjust and become a family man; though he was still slowly learning and trying every single day. Gerald, though obviously a changed man, I was still skeptical of. For over twelve years I gave him not only my heart but my life and I am forced to leave with nothing but a former shell of myself and a broken heart until he decides to reappear again to profess his undying love. The past few weeks between Gerald and I have noticeably strengthened our bond, but it does not undo the pain and hurt he caused unto me during the time we were first together. The cheating, the rising tempers, the impatience, everything. Not only was I miserable half the time throughout the course of our relationship, I felt somewhat fearful of Gerald. I already understood he and I were not only different in terms of ethnic background, but personality as well. Often times he made me feel as if I was abnormal for not being as outspoken or opinionated as he would be. It is another reason why I gravitated towards Kato and fell for him as fast as I did.

I slowly exited the car, entering the midnight air as I slowly treaded into Gerald's apartment. I shut down my phone for the duration of the day after my argument with my mother to get some peace and quiet. I was already expecting a wave of missed calls and messages once I looked at it in the morning; but right now, I just wanted to relax. I felt bad because I was quite sure Gerald may have called and messaged me to see about the plans for white day but after the eventful morning with my mother I was in no mood for company. I sighed, slowly taking out my keys to unlock the door before it swung open and revealed an irritated yet relieved Gerald. I wanted to speak, but the words in my heard would not register and I could only look down at the floorboards surrounding the entranceway.

"Where the hell have you been?!" I remained quiet for a moment. He repeated. "Well? Where have you been?"

"Gerald…"

"So my plans for today meant little to you?"

I shot up, forcing back sudden conflicting emotions. "It was nothing like that!" I defended. "I simply just took the day to myself to get my head clear."

"So you don't know how to answer your phone?"

"I turned it off." I replied simply, shoving past Gerald to head to the bedroom. I set down my purse atop of the dresser, took out a Benedryl, and began to shed myself of my clothing. I just wanted to go to sleep. "Can we not discuss this right now? I am really tired and not in the mood."

Gerald scoffed, storming into the bedroom behind me and slamming the door. It startled me slightly. "So you ignore my phone calls, text messages, and blow off the plans I had for today? What the hell, Phoebe? Today was supposed to be special."

I sighed. "I'm sorry, Gerald. Really, I am. It's just that I have been in such a foul mood since I met with my mother this morning and I did not want to spoil your day."

His brow rose, he stepping in front of me. He held my arms and guided my attention towards him. "What's wrong?"

I sniffled, popping my tablet as I shoved Gerald off. "Nothing. I just want to sleep so I can get up early to meet the movers."

"Movers?"

I nodded, stopping. "I…I decided it be best if I pick Haruhi up from her grandparents and head back home to Kato."

Gerald stood frozen, stunned and speechless as he watched me shimmy further out of my dress and prepare for bed. I just wanted this Benedryl to hurry and kick in so I could just escape from these emotions. I didn't know the right time to tell Gerald that I had decided to move back in with Kato, but I figured it would be much more efficient to tell him before there were boxes filled to the brim of his living room with my belongings. I began to grab a comforter from the closet to head to the couch; it feeling awkward sleeping next to him after I told him the news I had been avoiding all day but he stopped me. His hand wrapped around my wrist as he yanked me towards to bed, tossing me like a used napkin.

"Gerald!" I shrieked. "What the hell?"

"No Phoebe, you what the hell!" he roared, livid. He straddled me and pinned my wrists to the softness of the sheets, rocking me back and forth. "You are moving back in with that bastard after everything we been through together? Have these past few weeks meant that little to you!?"

"Gerald…"

"You are willing to throw away everything we worked to rebuild for a man that could have killed you? Raped you!? Hurt _our_ daughter?"

My heart stopped. _Our_? "Gerald…"

"Do I mean nothing to you, Phoebe? Have I been wasting my time? Are you that stupid!?"

That resonated a thick chord with me. I got angry. "How dare you! How dare you! I'm the furthest thing from stupid, but I am a broken woman, Gerald! I'm sorry if you cannot accept that fact that I am in love with not only you but Kato as well but if you weren't too busy sleeping around with Ariel or lusting after other women because I did not fit your personal 'standards', we would have still been together and Haruhi would have been yours!"

I watched Gerald grow stoic, almost lifeless as his temper simmered as he released me. He removed himself from atop of me and stood to walk towards the door. I breathed in. "My mother was right. A relationship is not about two people that love them; it's about sacrifice. No matter how hard you love someone, they will never love you the way you deserve to be in return because they could never truly be yours in the first place. Kato is Haruhi's father. Haruhi needs her father, Gerald; not you. She needs a man that won't whisk her off her feet to only break her heart and leave her just like he did with me!"

Gerald turned to face me, emotionless. He opened his mouth to speak but closed it just as quickly. I began to sob. "I never expected to see you again, let alone fall deeper in love with you than before. But I am not the same woman you saw four years ago, Gerald. I am different. I am bitter, angry, and more calloused and been taught the hard way that genuine love between two people does not exist. The only reason you even bothered coming here was to get class credit and maybe hope for a miracle that I did not live up to the rumor that I was engaged."

"Phoebe…you're wrong." He whispered, head held low. "You are so wrong."

"Then please tell me how I am wrong, Gerald. Tell me where my logic failed."

"Because I do love you." He spoke simply, never once breaking eye-contact. I swallowed hard. "I love you more than life itself and to hear you even think about going back to that poor excuse of a man only shows that karma is truly a bitch and hits harder than Helga G. Pataki herself. For the first time, I can honestly say I have done all I could to win your heart back and it still leaves me back at square one."

There was a veil of deathly silence that filled the room before either of us spoke. "I think it be best if go over Arnold's tonight so I can be out of your way tomorrow morning. I'll be back by three so I expect you and your things gone by then."

I nodded, turning my back on Gerald as my heart and body began to ache in agonizing pain. "Alright."

I heard Gerald shuffle through his closet to grab his jacket before slamming the front door of the apartment. I broke down immediately after and felt myself grow ill. I curled into fetal position on the bathroom floor and wept. I felt a tight pain in my chest as a sharp jolt of electricity shot through my abdomen and pelvis. I called out Gerald's name repeatedly in hopes that he would come back but he didn't. He did not walk through the door or whisper in my ear that everything was going to be alright. This time, he was gone for good and our second chance at a happy ending was now obsolete. I kept replaying the scene in my head; constantly asking myself if I really made the right decision. Ever since talking to my mother, I gained a new perspective on relationships and it really pushed me over the edge in reassuring that I had to go through with my intentions. No matter what I do, I could never be truly happy. I was skeptical of Gerald but also weary of Kato. Either way I was in a lose-lose situation so I chose the lesser evil. My mother was right and as much as my heart belonged to Gerald, Kato could provide or Haruhi and I. I would never have to worry about feeding my child on days where I come home late from school and have limited time or whether or not the light bill will be paid. Kato was a sound provider and growing as a father. I was getting too emotionally attached to Gerald again and I needed to distance myself from him permanently this time. My mother was right and the revelation of my father being a womanizer only solidified that my life was not going to get much better than what it already was. I was simply playing off my emotions and aching heart with my relationship with Gerald and looked for the emotion and love I was not getting from home elsewhere.

I grabbed onto the edge of the cabinet as the pain in my torso grew, heavy cramping resembling a hail storm brewing in the mists. I muffled my screams with a washcloth as the blood began to trickle down my legs and pool at my ankles. The Benedryl was laced with Ru-486. I found out the news last week during a visit to get screened for infection in my lungs when I was told the news. I shut myself out to the world for the remainder of the week before I ordered that my prescription be laced to avoid any suspicion or further damage my psyche. I squeezed my legs tighter, bringing myself to tears as I silently screeched in pain. I was not prepared to bring another child into this cold, cruel world knowing only the spite that waited.

**A/N: Despite the depressed chapter, I have some great news. I have been away for almost a month because…I am officially a wife! I am officially Mrs. Ki. My husband and I have been away on our honeymoon in his homeland of North Korea and we vacationed in Cape Town, South Africa. We thought it be nice to incorporate out ethnic backgrounds in our honeymoon escape. Pretty neat I think. We decided to marry early to cut expenses on the extravagant wedding and have a very intimate gathering to share our happiness with close friends and family. Since he and I are both paying student loans and what not, it seemed the best option. Plus we got to spend quality time with one another. (Plus my wedding gown was a Vera Wang and Vera does not take kindly to gaining weight. I am already a plus-size beauty and with me being pregnant, a chiffon dress does not look cute when stretched. ) Anyhoo, sorry for the wait and thank you freaktrains for your TWO PM's. I received them and I hope this chapter makes you happy. I love you guys and appreciate your support. -SensuallyPassionate**


	9. Chapter 9

**Gerald**

"Coming here was a mistake."

"Gerald, relax for a minute and breath."

"No." I deadpanned, stuffing more sweaters and jeans into my suitcase. It was time for me to go. "I already made a few calls to the academic advisor and she told me that if my professors allow me to take the final early, there is no need for me to stay in Japan any more than I have to."

Arnold grew quiet, contemplating on what to say next. For the past week and a half he had been trying to get me to reconsider leaving an entire month early to go back to the states but I was not open to anything he had to say. I was half-way packed, purchased my plane picket out, and ready to move on with my life. I grabbed the photo frame displaying a picture of me, Haruhi, and Phoebe at the winter carnival I took them to a while back. I traced the contours of the two women I loved before tossing the photograph in the trash bin next to my bed. If I was planning on moving forward with my life I could not allow myself to be hung up on Phoebe. For four years I let the guilt and pain eat at me inside before coming to terms with my wrongdoings towards her. I apologized one too many times and did everything in my power to make her realize I was a different man. The evening she came home and told me she was planning on going back with Kato shattered my world; opening my eyes to see what was truly my reality. Phoebe and I were only playing house. There was no possible future for us and I was asinine to believe that there was. Although I believe Phoebe when she says she does love me, I know that I made my advances far too late and I was beating a dead horse. It was time to move on.

"Gerald, just listen for a second."

"No, you listen!" I cut him off, temper flaring. "For the past ten days you have been hounding me about leaving. Ultimately it's my decision, Arnold, and there is nothing you can say or do to change that fact. I love Phoebe, but she made is crystal clear the other week that she is planning to work out her corrupted marriage with Kato and has moved on from our chapter in her life. It's time I do the same."

"Gerald." He whispered, running a quick hand through his hair. "Listen to yourself. Just talk to Phoebe. One minute she was talking to Helga about wanting to take your relationship with you a step further and the next she ends it with you? Something must have set her off."

I sighed. I was too tired and irritated to be having this conversation yet again after I explained in great detail my motives for leaving. I couldn't do this any longer. "Arnold, I'm going to go for a walk."

"Gerald…"

"Don't follow." I shouted out before slamming the door behind me. I needed to get some fresh air before I suffocated. Ever since word got back to Helga that Phoebe moved back into her shared home with Kato, tension has been building up between the three of us. Helga and Arnold still go out with Phoebe from time to time but I never accompany them anymore. One evening, Phoebe came by to drop off a textbook for Helga. She stood motionless in the doorway as our eyes never once unlocked from each other. I was the first to turn away, grabbing my glass of cranberry juice and heading to my bedroom to finish more studying. Times where Arnold and Helga would like to double date, they dare not ask me in fear of what I might say while awkward periods where the four of us would be in the same room only made things worse. Arnold was my best-friend but also Helga's fiancée. He could no longer take sides; neither could Helga. It got to a point where whenever I saw Phoebe, I would coldly shrug her off and excuse myself from the rest of the group.

I reached into my pocket and retrieved my forgotten cigarette I had since Friday. I picked up the disgusting habit the night Phoebe broke the news to me and was unable to put it down since. It was an expensive choice of relief, but did the body good nonetheless. I fumbled in my right pocket for my lighter, silently cursing when I found out I did not have it. I grew even more frustrated.

"Shit."

"Need a light?" I turned around to meet a short, yet beautiful bi-racial African-American woman. She had flawless almond kissed skin, long flowing raven locks that danced gracefully against the late afternoon breeze, and kissable pink lips laced with a sheer coat of gloss. She smiled, extending a yellow tube towards me. "I saw you struggling back there, thought you might need a spare lighter."

I thanked her, lighting my cigarette before handing it back to here. "Gerald."

"Morgan. Morgan Taylor." She beamed, flipping back her hair as she took in a drag of her own cigarette.

"Sorry we had to meet under these most awkward of circumstances. I normally don't smoke."

She shrugged. "It's alright. Neither do I but even the occasional smoker needs a little stress reliever right?"

I nodded, exhaling a stream of grey smoke against the twilight. "You from here?"

She shook her head, beginning to walk towards her car. She leaned against the mood lazily and motioned for me to come over and join her. I obliged. "No, from California. Just here visiting a friend; who by the way, is supposed to be meeting me here in a few."

"Do you like Japan?" I asked.

She blew another round of smoke, adjusting her scarf before digging her wedge booties into the fertile soft soil. "It's alright. How about you, stranger? You from around here? I don't know many blacks that live in Japan unless in the military."

" It's…different is all I can say. Came for school." I answered. "Had to study abroad for a semester to graduate."

"Major?"

"Political-Science."

"Ambition?"

"Lawyer."

She nodded her head pleased, beginning to scan me up and down before extinguishing her cigarette beneath her feet. Morgan Taylor was a very beautiful woman. She looked to be of African-American, Japanese, and Native American decent but I did not want to ask out of courtesy. I gave her body her own look through, scanning her curves thoroughly before nestling in the valley of her exposed cleavage she had nestled in the valley of her sweater. The jeans she wore fit her perfectly and hugged her in body miraculously. She was a bit taller than how I liked my women, but an overall stunning beauty I wouldn't mind getting to know further. "Nice to see a black man with a plan that does not involve dribbling a damn ball or rapping about the vast number of women he sleeps with nightly."

"Glad to see I have your approval." I sing-songed. She giggled, flipping back another wave of her hair. "How about you?"

"I attend University of Los Angeles, English major, have the aspirations of being a novelist one day."

"That's unique."

"Think so?"

"Yes." I ansewered with genuine faith. "Very. Never met a woman that actually wanted to write novels for a living. If I may ask, what genre."

"I'm really into the super-natural genre, as well as fantasy and romance. I thought of combining the three to make a literary classic." I scoffed, snorting rudely unintentionally as I immediately associated her passion with teenage romance short stories. She narrowed her eyes at me before crossing her arms angrily across her chest, huffing. "What's so damn funny?"

"I apologize. That was very rude of me. I was just thinking about teenage love stories that have cliché plot lines when you told me that."

She rolled her eyes, playfully nudging my shoulder. "That's exactly what I want to write. Thanks for downplaying that for me."

I immediately felt like an asshole and quickly apologized for my thoughtless retort. I offered to make it up to her but she was skeptical and a bit turned off so she respectfully declined. I brought up taking her to lunch one afternoon before I left to at least show her how much of a nice guy I really was and not some snobbish jerk that ridicules other people dreams and surprisingly she agreed. "I sincerely do apologize. It was nothing geared towards you."

She smiled. "It's quite alright. I'm sure you aren't as much of a jerk as you may seem to be."

Before I could quip back another remark, a familiar figure appeared from the distance; waving towards Morgan as she hurriedly jogged down the street to meet us. I silently cursed myself and took a well-deserved drag. It was Hanna.

"Morgan!" she squealed, hugging her tightly. Her backpack slung heavily across her back before she whipped it off and threw it in the trunk. She looked at me, then back at Morgan. "What's going on here?"

"Nothing much, just met a new friend over here. Saw him trying to light a cigarette and started friendly conversation."

"You know Gerald?" Hanna asked, almost stunned. Morgan looked at me and back at Hanna. "How did you two meet?"

"Wait, I just met him ten minutes ago. How do you know him?" Morgan paused, grinning before letting out a low chuckle. "I see, popular with the ladies, hm?"

"You can say that." Hanna grumbled, shuffling her feet. I rolled my eyes, suddenly agitated. Hanna knew nothing more about the situation between Phoebe and I other than what was relayed back to her. Of course it was expected she take Phoebe's side and support her decision to go back and fix her marriage with Kato, but ever since our split, not only has it been drastically awkward between Helga and Arnold, but also a few other of our mutual friends.

I cleared my throat. "Well, it was a pleasure meeting you Miss. Morgan. Morgan Taylor. I'll be waiting for you at the coffee house on Okana at noon tomorrow."

"Alright." Morgan blushed, pulling out a small piece of paper and a half-chewed pencil to write down her number and information. She slipped it in my shirt front pocket with a wink before turning to Hanna. Hanna had her mouth glued to the ground before she began grumbling something in Spanish to Morgan. Morgan dismissed her with a flick of her wrist before opening the driver side door and getting in. She offered to drive me to wherever I was headed but I turned down the offer. I still needed to take my light stroll and get my head clear. I began to walk off before Hanna called out to me, racing towards me like a trained runner away from the ears of Morgan. I wanted to politely ask her if we could discuss whatever it was later, but she was not in the mood for pleasantries.

"What exactly do you think you are doing?"

I sighed. "What do you mean, Hanna?"

"Don't play coy." She spat angrily, shoving her hands on her hips with sass. I rolled my eyes and began walking away but she pulled at my shirt collar. It took every ounce of willpower I had not to lash out at the poor girl. "Phoebe?"

"Hanna, with all due respect, my love life is none of your concern. Phoebe decided to work her marriage out with Kato. I am moving on with my life."

"Going on a date so soon?"

"It's not a date, Hanna." I muffled. "Why am I even explaining myself to you anyway? You are irrelevant."

She gasped, saying something in her native tongue before slapping me. I clenched my left cheek in sudden pain and rubbed it slowly to ease the tension. I wanted to strangle the broad but I decided against it. Hanna and I weren't even friends for her to even fathom the idea of laying her hands on me. I growled. "Hanna, unless you want to see me lose the mask of the gentleman, I suggest you rethink your next move before it gets you hurt."

She took a step back, gulping. "I'm just saying, how you could even think of dating another woman when just a week ago you were with Phoebe."

"I was never officially with Phoebe!" I snapped. "She has always been married and never intended on us getting back together."

"Not true!" Hanna piped, standing on her toes to get full height to become eye level with me. "She did have plans on being with you. She wanted to divorce Kato. She wanted to move back to Hillwood with you. She wanted to possibly think about remarrying. She thought of all that but because her mother is so pessimistic about relationships, she negatively influenced her to give up her pursuit of a future with you and remain with Kato. Why do you think she ended up not keeping the baby!?"

_Baby? _Hanna gasped, covering her mouth with her mitten before trying to U-turn back towards an impatiently waiting Morgan. I yanked her blouse and snatched her hand to keep her from leaving but she tried her best to pull away from me; even going as far as to scream 'rape'. I finally let her go and watched her run towards Morgan's car. She took a final glance at me before mouthing 'sorry' and getting into the backseat. I watched the two drive off as I allowed my cigarette to finally fizzle out. I stood still for a few minutes, allowing the cool breeze to roughly beat against my hot skin. I balled up my fists before letting out an animalistic howl against the night sky, rushing towards my car. I angrily searched for my car keys for a few moments before finally finding them; quickly unlocking my car door and putting the key into the ignition. I drove damn near ninety the entire ride over to Phoebe's; my mind on autopilot as my emotions guided me. I sat in her elegantly paved drive outside her gated house and called her cellphone several times before being sent automatically to voicemail. That only intensified my anger and caused me to manually calm myself down before I tore off my steering wheel in sudden rage. I gave her cellphone another ring before she finally picked up.

"Gerald, are you ok?"

"Phoebe, what baby is Hanna talking about!?"

There was silence on the receiving end as her breathing quickened in pace. I felt that unfamiliar side of myself emerge from the depths of my soul as I forced myself out of the car and towards the gate of her house. I asked the question again but she began sobbing instead of giving me my answer. I hung up on her and attempted to hop the rather large fence. I tore my leather jacket and almost sprained my ankle getting over the damned thing but that only fueled my fire. I rang her doorbell and waited for someone, anyone to answer the door. One of the maids opened it and tried to greet me but I pushed past her and called out for Phoebe. Haruhi came rushing down the steps screaming out my name but I brushed past her in fear of hurting her. I finally found Phoebe in the den with Kato and a few of his colleagues sipping tea and eating small cookies. Kato stood to confront me but I shoved him aside and forced my way towards Phoebe; grabbing her by her collar before throwing her against the loveseat. I straddled her and asked her again.

"What baby is Hanna referring to, Phoebe."

She glanced at Kato, his colleagues, and then at me. Tears started to weld within the corner of her eyes as she tried to whisper something in my ear but I shoved her back. I did not want her to even touch me. Kato made a lunge towards me and knocked me off his wife but I punched him in the face to keep him from holding me. Security emerged from the foyer, violently snatching me from atop of Kato before I could do more damage to his face. Phoebe laid screaming as I watched Haruhi hide behind a curtain. I was dragged outside to an awaiting squad car before handcuffed and thrown in the backseat. I watched as Phoebe ran to the doorway in an effort to keep the police from pressing charges but Kato insisted; holding his face as the house nurses dabbed away fresh blood with a handkerchief. All I could see was Phoebe mouth something inaudible before I turned my back on her. It was definitely time to go home.

**A/N: I decided two updates in one day because I am so behind and I wanted to give you all something for being patient. I am glad to see everyone actively engaged in the story and I apologize if it isn't as 'happy' as you would like but as I said, it is supposed to be realistic. But don't fret kittens, I am sure you all will love my conclusion. We are actually three-four chapters away from the finale so stay tuned. Love you all much! -SensuallyPassionate**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter theme song: "A Thousand Years": Christina Perri**

**Epilogue**

"I would like to take this time out to congratulate our newest partner, Gerald Johansson." My boss, Kenneth Clark announced with a hearty smile. My colleagues proudly applauded as I was ushered to the front of the room. "Not only is he a fine outstanding gentleman with a 97% success rate, top state's attorney, as well as an esteemed author of several books, he is the youngest associate to be made partner at Clark, Williams, and Joyner. Give him another round of applause ladies and gentlemen."

I posed for the camera, widely grinning as I shook various hands and taking many photo ops. The celebration was in my honor and I finally had made it. I looked over to my family, waving at my daughter, Alica, before giving a small peck on the cheek to my mother.

"Congratulations, son!" she beamed, getting misty eyed. "I am so proud of you. You make me so happy."

"Thank you, mother."

Jaime-O crept up behind me, shuffling my non-existent fro for old-time sake before engulfing me into a tight squeeze. "Good job, little bro. You out here doing the damn thing."

I playfully punched him in his side. "You know it's not a big deal."

"Oh yes it is." He retorted. "Dad would have been extremely proud of you." My mother nodded.

"He was here this afternoon." I paused, smiling. "I felt his presence. He let it be known he could not miss this day worth anything."

"Someone in the family has to make it big."

I smiled. "Thanks, bro. You are doing pretty well for yourself too; got your own mechanic shop and a family on the way."

"True, but you, little brother, are a future politician, man. You are out here making big changes. We need a legacy amongst the Johansson men."

I chuckled. "Seems we both have that already." I signaled towards our respective families.

Jaime-O turned to his longtime girlfriend, Juanita, and rubbed her pregnant stomach with a slight smile. "Yeah…funny how we are both fathers man."

"I know." I spoke genuinely, turning to watch Alicia rush towards my pant leg. I quickly picked her up to give her a quick peck on the cheek and a 'squishy' hug. She wrapped her arms around my neck, smiling. "We are family men, now."

"Congratulations, daddy!"

"Thank you, baby. I'm glad Mommy took off work to bring you to daddy's ceremony."

"Mommy said it was a big day for you and that we had to be there."

I kissed my daughter again, quietly adjusting one of her ponytails. I turned to face Chandra, kissing her on the cheek before handing Alicia back over to her. "Thank you for coming."

She blushed, moving a stray braid from her face, nodding. "I had to allow our daughter to see her father in one of the most pivotal highlights in his career."

I turned to both my mother and Jaime-O to ask them for a moment alone with Chandra; them obliging, minus the corny thumb up Jaime-O gave me before he and Juanita hit the refreshment table. Both Chandra's family and my family wanted to see us get back together- especially my family. We met back in law school a year after I left Tokyo. I was still bruised and scorned from my incident with Phoebe that I almost did not recognize the signs that Chandra was flirting with me half the time. After a few months of playing the game cat and mouse, she asked me out for a lunch date and- after debating with myself on determining if I was ready or not- reluctantly took her up on her offer. To my surprise, I had a great time and really enjoyed myself. Before my date with Chandra, I had not genuinely laughed in over a year. I did my absolute best to steer clear of women and relationships altogether. Chandra was the only exception I had made in my self-imposed year of solitude and allowed myself to get into. After a few dates, intimate encounters, and shacking up after eight months of dating, we gave it a try for a genuine relationship and produced a lovely daughter nine months later, Alicia.

"Well, I appreciate you for coming. I know you did not have to." I glanced at my watch, "Do you need me to drive you back to your firm or did Candace drop you off?"

"Candace dropped me off and is waiting outside." She spoke lowly, turning to divert her gaze away from mine towards some middle-aged woman's shoes. "I just wanted to drop off Alicia."

I gave her a small kiss on her forehead, gripping her shaky palms in an effort to soothe her. "You alright?" she nodded.

"Just trying to come to terms with everything is all." She forced a small smile. "Don't worry about me. I'm a tough girl, can tie my own sandals and everything."

I chuckled lowly, kissing her again. "I'll see you this evening for dinner."

I watched her grab her purse and leave, feeling my chest tighten slowly. I kept asking myself if I was making a big mistake and allowing a prime opportunity to slip away from me because of my conflicting emotions. Chandra was a wonderful woman and an exceptional mother to our baby girl. Alicia needed her family and not some separated home; but what could I do? Chandra was already moved out and picking up the pieces to her life while I did the same. Was our mutual separation justified because of my reasoning? Or was I living in a fantasy land that I would never amount to going into?

I excused myself from my own party to follow Chandra down the hall. She was already at the elevators before I tried calling out to her. She turned to face me but a familiar voice startled me from behind. I turned to see Arnold and a pregnant Helga, holding a bouquet of red roses and a bottle of the finest champagne. Arnold and I did our signature handshake while I kindly embraced Helga and pecked her on the cheek. I turned back to face Chandra but she had already left.

"Congratulations on making partner, hair boy."

"Thank you, Helga. I was not expecting to see you all until this evening at dinner."

Arnold nonchalantly shrugged. "You know I could not miss my best-friend's ceremony on making partner." He smiled. "What's next on your agenda?"

"I already filed to run for state representative of my district so I guess I will start campaigning in the morning."

"Do you ever sleep?"

Helga nudged Arnold, rolling her eyes. "I know you aren't criticizing anyone ol' football head. Or should I say, head resident Shortman."

Arnold kissed Helga lightly. "You know I would cut my hours for you."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, save it bucko!"

I laughed, gently shaking my head. "You two have not changed I see. How long has it been since you both married?"

"Seven years next month." Arnold beamed proudly, gently squeezing Helga's hand, "It was nowhere close to being easy but it was well worth the headache."

I remained quiet for a moment, reflecting on Chandra. If I had not been so stupid, I could have been happily married to her three years ago to the day. "And the baby?"

Helga looked down at her stomach, sighing loudly. "I am ready to pop at any given moment. I'm just so ready to start having sex again. Ol' football head won't even touch me in fear of hurting our son."

I laughed heartily at the crimson hue seeping through Arnold's cheeks. Helga was still as brash as she had ever been. "Well, please, enjoy the refreshments in the conference room. I have to excuse myself for a moment."

"From your own party?" Arnold asked, I nodded. "Oh, ok. Which reminds me, you have another gift from both me and Helga downstairs in the garage."

I failed to hide my excitement. "You didn't…"

Arnold shrugged, winking. "You have to go see for yourself."

Like a kid on Christmas morning, I raced down the stairs and hoped on the first available elevator that led towards the garage. Arnold and I had a bet going that whoever accomplished their dreams first would be given their dream car from either of us. Arnold wanted to be head resident at Hart Hospital by twenty-eight and I wanted to be partner of my firm around the same time. Needless to say, that with both of our ambition, drive, motivation, and a little friendly competition we managed to succeed around the same time so decided to call it a tie. I purchased Arnold his dream car of a Dodge challenger late summer of this year and placed hints-numerous of hints actually- that I wanted a classic Mustang GT. I already had my work car and an everyday car that I drove Alicia around in, a Mercedes and a Toyota Corolla respectively, but a car that was solely for my enjoyment and pleasure was not in the works just as of yet.

I approached my coveted parking spot and saw that next to my Mercedes was, in fact, my Mustang GT in my favorite color, red. Placed on the hood was an extra large yellow satin bow with, surprisingly, someone waiting in the passenger seat. My mouth gaped wide as I attempted to collect myself as I watched the door slowly ease open to reveal the love of my life, Phoebe Heyerdahl.

I remained quiet, simply stunned for a few minutes before I registered anything that had just happened within the last five minutes. I don't know how I went from being ecstatic about getting a brand new car from my best friend to growing irate at the sight of the woman that had me arrested-twice.

She swallowed, brushing a few curls behind her ear. I took a moment to look her over. She was even more beautiful than I remembered. She cut her hair since the last time I saw her into a cute pixie cut, gained more plentiful curves, fuller breasts, and was maybe an inch or two taller. She adjusted her rectangular glasses, smiling. "H-hello, Gerald."

"Phoebe." I spoke flatly.

"How are you? How have you been?"

I stuffed my hands into my suit jacket pocket, kicking imaginary rocks to hide my nerves. "Well and yourself?"

"Same." There was a small pause. "Congratulations."

I immediately looked up. "Huh?"

"Congratulations." She repeated. "On making partner of your firm. Helga told me a few weeks back you were selected and I wanted to stop by to show my support if that was alright."

"It's fine and thank you."

Neither one of us spoke for a few minutes, searching for the right words to say to each other. Occasionally either she or I would try and speak but would immediately second guess it. I watched her fumble with her purse nervously before clearing her throat a couple of times.

"…I guess I'll get back home then."

"Do you need me to drive you to the airport?"

She shook her head. "No, I live in West Haven now, only fifteen minutes away. Plus my car is parked outside."

West Haven? Wait… "But I thought…"

"I was still living in Tokyo?" she finished. "No, I moved back to the states three years ago after Haruhi turned six and my divorce with Kato was finalized."

That last part caught me off guard. "Divorce? But I thought you were planning to work things out with him? What happened to that?"

She shrugged. "It's complicated." She dismissed, earning a small stare. "But I just thought I come by and wish you congratulations. I know you don't want to be bothered with me so I figured I cause less trouble than needed."

I watched her begin to walk away before I reached out and grabbed her wrist. I don't know what possessed me to touch her so suddenly, but I immediately apologized, embarrassed. I did not know what had come over me. "Sorry."

"It's fine."

Another pause. "How is Haruhi?"

"She is fine." Phoebe smiled. "She turned ten last week."

"Wow." I chuckled, feeling old. I still remembered her when she was still a toddler hyped up on cotton candy. "Time flies."

She nodded in agreement. "I feel so old."

"Tell me about it." We shared a small laugh before the awkward tension emerged again. I decided to stop avoiding the purple elephant in the room. "Why did you come and see me, Phoebe?"

"To wish you best wishes in your career." She blushed, caught off guard by my sudden shift in tone.

"Is that all?"

She grew silent. "And…I wanted to see you…I needed to see you."

"Why?"

"Because I wanted to apologize for everything." She choked, fighting back tears. "I know our last time together was not exactly picturesque but for what it's worth I thought about you every day since then. Not a day has gone by where I don't think about how you may be doing and if you were happy. I felt like me allowing you to leave was one of my biggest regrets that I will have to live with for the rest of my life; but I'm ok with that as long as you are happy."

I was stunned. Phoebe actually thought about me? For seven years I thought she hated me and never wanted to hear or see me again. I admit, for the first three years of us being apart I did not want anything to do with Phoebe out of anger and frustration. I was angry I wasted so much time chasing after Phoebe only to allow her to slip through the cracks of my fingers again and frustrated because it was nothing I could possibly do about the situation; she was in love with someone else. I apologized as many times as it took but still made little to no progress in getting back to how things were before college. What stung the most was knowing that all my efforts went to waste and I left in handcuffs, with a criminal record, and without the only woman I loved more than life itself.

"Phoebe…"I breathed. "Where is all this coming from?"

"I have wanted to tell you this for years, Gerald. I tried calling, texting, emailing, everything. You changed your number and deactivated the only email account I knew you had. I even tried writing you letter but they always came back as return to sender. I figured I just take the hint and let you be."

"Phoebe…"

She sniffled, trying to hide her sudden flow of small tears. "I know you are married and have a child so believe me, I am not trying to ruin a happy marriage and barge into your life unexpectedly. I just wanted to finally let you know that I have never stopped loving you all these years and if it means anything, I will never love anyone as much as I love you."

I watched as Phoebe grabbed a small dab of tissues from her purse as she began to walk towards the exit of the parking garage. I watched in silence as the heels of her pumps clacked against the cool, cement floor beneath her as she moved further and further into the distance. I called out to her, she stopping in mid-stride.

"Who told you I was married?"

She turned to face me. "Helga told me you had a daughter and was in a long term relationship with some woman, Chandra. I figured that after over five years of dating, you would have popped the question by now." She paused, fighting back emotion. "I know you."

"I did pop the question, Phoebe. "

She grew quiet again, turning her back towards me. "Well I hope you are happy Gerald, really I am. Congratulations again."

"I never married Chandra, Phoebe." She stopped, standing deathly still. "I called off our engagement because I could never find myself every marrying any other woman aside from you."

I heard her gasp loudly. I slowly made my way towards her motionless figure, turning her around to face me. She had tears streaming down her face, her left hand clenching her blouse over her heart. She tried to look away but I would not let her. Instead, I followed my first instinct and kissed her. She did not pull back, instead she gave him; wrapping her arms around my neck to pull me in closer. Her tongue began an intimate dance with mine as I backed her into wall; gripping her thighs as I lifted her off her feet. She wrapped her legs around me, electing a sudden moan. I began to nip at her neck, inhaling the sweet scent of her perfume and personal fragrance that intoxicated me into going dumb. I felt myself stiffen, blood rushing everywhere than where it should have been. This needed to stop.

I pulled away in agony, swearing lightly. I set Phoebe back on the ground before I took a moment to collect myself. Not only where there cameras everywhere, I had just realized I was groping my ex in the heat of the moment in my firm's parking structure. I turned to face Phoebe, face flushed as she fixed her blouse. Apparently I ripped off a few of her buttons; exposing her black lace bra. I sighed. "I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

She blushed deeper. "I also apologize, Gerald, I did not stop the kiss." Another thick veil of silence. I watched her grab her forgotten purse from against a parked car's hood, removing a tube of lipstick to pepper her lips with. She cleaned her glasses and straightened her pencil skirt that I nearly transformed into a muddle of fabric against her waist. "I better get going. You are missing your own party."

"Wait." I shouted, earning a crestfallen glare. I rubbed my chin hair before making another move, standing in front of her. "What made you divorce Kato?"

She looked at me for a short while before answering. "I realized I never really loved him, but only wanted to stay with him to make our relationship work for Haruhi." She paused to take in a short breath. "My heart has always, and will always, belonged to you. I was just so taken aback when you came to Japan that I was not sure on what to do. I didn't even have a chance to fully heal from our breakup before I was coaxed into a relationship with Kato from our parents."

"And the baby?"

Another veil of silence. She breathed. "It was my mistake to force a miscarriage. I was pregnant with our baby and at the time, in a dark place, in a horrid marriage, and having an affair as a married woman. I already had one child, I was not ready for another. It was selfish of me and I am so sorry for what I did, Gerald."

I remained quiet, listening to Phoebe begin to weep in front of me. The gentleman inside of me wanted to console her, hold her and let her know that everything would be alright. But the beast inside of me that was still angry and resentful of her kept me at a distance. "Phoebe, I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything." She sniffled, still sobbing. "I know I came seven years too late and trust me when I say that I wanted to come to the states a lot sooner. I hear you have a daughter and you finally found someone that makes you happy. I really did not come to tear that away from you."

"So what did you come for?"

"For closure." She whispered, touching my cheek. "I never stopped loving you and after our encounter in Tokyo, I always had a slither of hope that there was still hope for us. I figured you may find someone else to replace me, but I always held on to knowing that your heart belonged to me and mine does to you."

I grabbed Phoebe's hands, kissing them lightly. I allowed small tears to weld in the corner of my eyes , my chest becoming too tight to fully bear in my constricting suit. I never thought for a second that I would ever see Phoebe Heyerdahl again, let alone have her come to the states to chase me and profess her undying love for me. I was speechless, almost too emotionally driven to really formulate a single thought. My mind was telling me to peacefully end this never-ending game of cat and mouse between us for a chance for us to finally move on from each other. So much time has passed, third parties are now involved, and there are families to consider. But my heart and soul only wanted to embrace her then and there into a loving kiss, telling her that my feelings for her have went unaltered for the past seven years. The only reason Chandra and I separated was because she found out I was not entirely over my ex, Phoebe. Chandra had a place in my heart that Phoebe indefinitely owned, but with a daughter and my newfound love and feelings for her, she deserved a lot more than a spur of the moment decision.

I looked up at Phoebe, eyes glazed with tears as I kissed her away. I whispered something in her ear, being her pillar of support as she collapsed into my arms telling me she felt the same. Throwing caution to the wind, I guided her over to my new car, removing the bow Arnold had poorly tied on the hood before I grabbed the keys out of the glove compartment. I instructed for Phoebe to get in before I came to my senses. She asked me if I was alright with leaving my own party but I politely shrugged it off as I back out the parking space. I dug around in my pocket for a moment to retrieve my music player. I asked Phoebe to attach it to the stereo and find a particular song. I searched for the knob that let the top down of my mustang as I put it in gear. That familiar song from my daughter's favorite movie began to play; a song that I really grew to love as it spoke to my soul.

_I have loved you for a thousand years._

I grabbed Phoebe's hand, beginning to drive off anywhere. We knew in our hearts that it was past our prime and that it was time we moved on from each other. We had our respective lives that we needed to live and dragging our romance on any longer would hurt the ones we loved the more than it would if we remained apart. But for today…today only…I was hers and she was mine. I leaned over for a final kiss, thumbing away a single tear cascading down her flushed cheeks. I have loved her for a thousand years and I will love her for a thousand more.

**A/N: I kind of got misty eyed writing this. Damn. *sniffle* Well, this is the end. I figured why drag this on longer than it needs to so after a lot of consideration and re-reading pink elephants, I figured it was time for a soft and sweet conclusion. I know it's not what you all hoped for and expected, but, again, this is supposed to be based on real-life. I honestly wanted to put them back together but it felt super fake so I didn't. *sigh* Don't fret kittens, I have another Gerald and Phoebe story in the works. I appreciate you all for your support and readership. You all are fabulous. Hanna, freaktrains, Patakifan, Morgan Taylor, Sarissa, Neptune, and Black Rob especially for being loyal readers and fans. See you all soon and thank you for enjoying my twisted, dark fantasies.**

**SensuallyPassionate.**


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